New international whistleblowing management standard launched

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Guidance on what employers should consider when developing and improving whistleblowing management protocols has been published by international standards body BSI. The new international standard states that organisations’ procedures for managing whistleblowing claims should be based on the principles of trust, impartiality and protection. It provides guidance to organisations for establishing, implementing, maintaining and improving a whistleblowing management system, whether stand-alone or part of a wider system, and has been developed by an international committee of governance experts. David Fatscher, head of environment, social and governance standards at BSI said: “Studies show that a large proportion of wrongdoing comes to the attention of the affected organisation through reports from someone within or close to the organisation. This has led organisations to introduce or improve internal whistleblowing policies and processes. “We are proud to have led the development of the first whistleblowing management system that can help organisations of all sizes to set-up and maintain a robust process. This is an important people-centric standard that can build organisational trust by encouraging a culture of openness, transparency, integrity and accountability.” The document, BS ISO 37002:2021, Whistleblowing management systems, Guidelines, says that an effective system for managing protected disclosures should involve the following:

• receiving reports of wro