Whistleblowing at Work Doubles; New Rules for Listed Companies

People are twice as likely to blow the whistle on workplace wrongdoing today as they were five years ago, according to a new report from the whistleblowing charity Public Concern at Work.

Data from the national whistleblower's helpline shows that the top two issues are safety risks and financial misconduct - each making up 30% of calls. The major shift over the past decade has been a three-fold increase in concerns about unfair trading and double standards and a similar increase in calls from the care sector.

Public Concern at Work promotes the whistleblowers' law - the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 - and now monitors and reviews its operation. There are over 400 claims each year, and compensation payments under the Act are running at £10m a year.

New Rules for Business

New rules next month require listed companies to bring in effective whistleblowing schemes. The New Combined Code on Corporate Governance applies to all listed companies and applies to all financial years commencing after November 2003.

It stipulates that:

"The audit committee should review arrangements by which staff of the company may, in confidence, raise concerns about possible improprieties in matters of financial reporting or other matters. The audit committee's objective should be to ensure that arrangements are in place for the proportionate and independent investigation of such matters and for appropriate follow-up action."

Public Concern at Work says businesses across Britain now have every reason to clean up their acts. "This is great news for consumers, shareholders and pensioners," says Mr Dehn "as whistleblowing is one of the recent success stories at protecting the public and deterring wrongdoing."

Public Concern at Work can be contacted on 020 7404 6609, or visit
www.pcaw.co.uk
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