Each year, Labor Day serves as an opportune time to reflect on the contributions of workers who blow the whistle. Workers expose unsafe working conditions, frauds swindling the government out of millions of dollars, and abuses of power in organizations both public and private. Strong whistleblower laws are labor laws, they protect workers from retaliatory employers and allow them to speak out about a wide-range of issues.
Because of a growing recognition of the contributions of employees who blow the whistle and the terrible retaliation they face, the number of whistleblower laws continues to grow, expanding the areas where workers can safely blow the whistle. Strong bipartisan support in Congress, the attention of the Biden-administration, and renewed commitment by federal agencies has ushered in a new era of whistleblower protection.
Whistleblower protection laws continue to receive support from members of Congress from both sides of the aisle. For example, legislation to strengthen protections and incentives for bank employees who blow the whistle on money laundering and sanctions violations is cosponsored by Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). A companion version of their bill in the House was unanimously approved by the Committee on Financial Services.
With this strong bipartisan support in Congress, the Biden administration has signaled an increased focus on the power of whistleblowers. At the end of 2021, the...
The author and behavioural scientist, Gad Saad, has just published a book on what he calls “suicidal empathy”. He says that “a society dies when it cares more about exhibiting infinite tolerance a...