Employees don’t have the same statutory whistleblower protections that public sector employees enjoy
A CSIS whistleblower recently came forward with explosive allegations of Chinese interference in Canadian democracy. There is an inquiry currently unfolding on Parliament Hill with a host of political staffers scheduled to testify. This could be the tip of the iceberg or a nothing burger. But what is clear is that whistleblowers can have a massive impact and set off a domino effect.
In the employment law context, we often see whistleblowing.
But there can be a misconception as to what makes one a whistleblower. A disgruntled person with an axe to grind and nefarious motivations to humiliate their employer is not a whistleblower. Sometimes people erroneously label themselves as whistleblowers, but their motivations are entirely dishonest and self-interested. They are simply seeking to extort their employer, not cure underlying ills.
What does it mean to be a genuine whistleblower?
It is an individual, usually an employee of a government agency or private corporation, who sheds light on wrongdoing. Often this wrongdoing will involve illegal, fraudulent or corrupt activity.
Often the whistleblowing is achieved by bringing the information to the public’s attention or reporting it to a higher authority, such as an anonymous tip line, an ombudsperson or — in the case of the CSIS information — a newspaper.
Whistleblowing can be done anonymously or in the open. And of course, there...
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