Whistleblowers cost UK £10m every year

UK
firms could save themselves high legal and compensation costs by not
victimising whistleblowers, new research claims.

The
cost of sacking staff who raise legitimate concerns has risen to at least £10m
every year according to the charity Public Concern at Work which supports
whistleblowers.

The
payouts result from government protection for whistleblowers enshrined in its
three-year old Public Interest Disclosure Act.

The
study says the highest award is just over £800,000, and the average payout
stands at just over £100,000.

There
have been 1,200 claims made so far under the legislation.

"It’s
no longer whistleblowers who are paying a heavy price – but those who victimise
them,” says Guy Dehn, Public Concern at Work director.

“With
such high awards and with tribunals protecting people who blow the whistle to
regulatory bodies and to the media, employers ignore this legislation at their
peril.”

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By Quentin Reade

The
full report is available at www.whistleblowing.org.uk