The Future of Whistleblowing in the UK
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Learn Live with Culture Shift: In this webinar series we discussed the changes being proposed to the UK’s law on whistleblowing, how it might affect employers .
Whistleblowing is often seen as the act of reporting information of malpractice that could have a detrimental impact on business and one that is seen as “in the public interest”. But it doesn’t just mean a criminal offence, fraud, financial misconduct, health and safety issues, a miscarriage of justice or the covering up of the aforementioned. It could and should be used for anything an employee sees as a failure on their employer’s part to rectify or stop, including bullying, discrimination and harassment.
But did you know, YouGov research in 2021 unveiled that only 31% of people knew how to raise a whistleblowing concern at work? And a staggering 46% said they didn’t know if their employer even has a whistleblowing policy?
At the moment, whistleblowers are protected from unfair treatment at work if they disclose information. However, there is a Protection for Whistleblowing Bill currently going through Parliament. But what is it and what will it mean for both organisations and their people?
In the first episode of our series, our CEO and Co-Founder Gemma McCall talked to WhistleblowersUK CEO Georgina Halford-Hall about what changes the bill would bring and how your organisation can be prepared for it.
In the second episode, we discussed why although whistleblowing can be a powerful tool to uphold the integrity and strength of a business, those who do are often punished for speaking up. We know some of the biggest barriers to reporting anything at work is the fear of repercussions or retaliation, as well as not being able to remain anonymous and not thinking they will be believed or taken seriously. This panel discussion brought together HR expert Alastair Swindlehurst, Founder of EZHR, and NHS whistleblower Peter Duffy, who bravely recounted the ordeal he went through in a bid to encourage employers not to repeat the same mistakes of his former organisation. They talked frankly about what it takes to speak up about misconduct in the workplace, and touched on proven ways of implementing policy change and encouraging people to speak up without fear.
What we're reading
Latest insights from the front lines of workplace culture.
Why Whistleblowing Protections Are Not Enough
The launch of the CIISA standards marked a significant moment for the creative industries, signalling growing recognition of the need for stronger protections around bullying, harassment and misconduct across film, television and wider media environments. But in a recent article for Broadcast Now, we highlight that whistleblowing protections alone will not solve the deeper cultural issues that have allowed harmful behaviour to persist for years.
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Speaking Up in the Creative Industries – Embedding Standards in Practice
With the CIISA Standards having been in place for a year and with the introduction of the Employment Rights Act, expectations around creating a healthy and effective speak up culture are shifting. Organisations being asked to move beyond policy and demonstrate how they are creating real, effective speak-up cultures.
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From the Conference Floor: Real-World Lessons for HR Leaders
Workplace misconduct is evolving, and many HR processes are struggling to keep up. At this year’s Culture Shift Annual Conference, one thing was clear: what worked even a year ago isn’t enough anymore. In this webinar join Gemma McCall (CEO) and Charlotte Taylor (Training Manager and ED&I Specialist) as they bring the most important conversations from the conference floor into a practical session for HR, People and Compliance leaders. You’ll hear what industry experts and legal professionals are seeing right now, and what it means for how you design, communicate and manage your approach to misconduct.
Feeling inspired?
Take the first step toward preventative misconduct management with a demo of our Report + Support™ platform. We can show you how to breakdown reporting barriers with anonymous 2-way messaging, and how to act before things escalate with name-matching and pattern-spotting across our analytics dashboard.
