Whistleblowers: Are You the Next Erin Brockovich?

December 2nd, 2009. By Kristine B

Okay, so Erin Brockovich isn’t the only whistleblower in US history. But, thanks to that oh-so-memorable movie, a lot of people consider her to be the most famous whistleblower. Much like the movie about her ordeal showed, the path to becoming a whistleblower is often long, complex and filled with confrontation (including some memorable Oscar-worthy scenes). Many potential whistleblowers may not know all the protections available to them. So, this week Pleading Ignorance looks at complex world of whistleblowers. 

What is a Whistleblower?

Aside from the obvious (that’s right, a person who blows a whistle IS—technically—a whistleblower) a whistleblower is a person who reports that an organization of which he is a part of is involved in misconduct. Frequently, the organization is an employer, but it doesn’t have to be. The whistleblower reports the misconduct to a person or entity that has the power to take corrective action against the unethical organization. 

In a nutshell: Person A works for Company B, which is involved in illegal activity. Person A reports Company B’s activities to Entity C. Entity C then takes action against Company B for its illegal activity. In some cases, Person A then gets a movie made about her life. (Note: this doesn’t always happen, so I wouldn’t count on it if you are thinking about being a whistleblower just to get a movie made about you.) 

Different types of misconduct include illegal dumping of toxic waste, false advertising, fraud, illegal accounting activities, not properly testing products, and pretty much anything else an unethical organization can be involved in that affects the public. And we’ve certainly seen plenty of unethical organizations around, so there is probably a lot to blow whistles about… 

Whistleblower Consequences 

Unfortunately, many people who could be whistleblowers choose not to because they fear retaliation. This retaliation can involve the person’s job—being fired or being demoted—or the person’s relationships. After all, many people may view the whistleblower as a snitch and choose to cut off any relationship with the snitch. 

Now, the law can’t do anything to protect a whistleblower from broken relationships. There’s just no law against ditching a friend or coworker. But, the law does protect whistleblowers from job retaliation. 

So, even if the whistleblower’s friends ditch her, she should still have a paycheck coming in—assuming the employer follows the law. Of course, if the employer was worried about following the law he wouldn’t have to worry about whistleblowers in the first place, so there’s no guarantee that the employer won’t fire the employee. But, if the whistleblower is fired in retaliation, she can file a lawsuit to regain her employment or be compensated for the lost income. 

Whistleblower Protections

There are a number of laws that protect whistleblowers from retaliation for their actions (but they still do not protect whistleblowers from losing their friends). These include the Occupational Safety and Health Act, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Surface Transportation Act, Toxic Substances Control Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act, to name a few. Really, there are many more—too many to name here. 

Some states have their own laws regarding whistleblowers. For example, New Jersey has the Conscientious Employee Protection Act, designed to protect employees who report or threaten to report illegal activity on the part of the employer. California has the False Claims Act, which prevents employers from retaliating against employees who have disclosed information to the government. 

However, the statute of limitations for whistleblowing cases varies, depending on the circumstances. For example, environmental whistleblowers have 30 days to make a written complaint to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration whereas employees can have up to 300 days to file a discrimination case against their employer. Meanwhile, whistleblowers reporting false claims against the federal government may have up to six years to file a civil lawsuit. 

So, basically, if you’re thinking about becoming a whistleblower, good for you but it’s a good idea to know the laws that apply directly to you and what your statute of limitations is. And again, don’t count on a movie being made about your life. It’s possible, but it’s unlikely. 

Whistleblowers and Qui Tam Laws

Qui Tam laws allow whistleblowers to take the place of the government and seek damages on behalf of the government. These laws, adopted by 20 states, also allow whistleblowers who successfully file a Qui Tam action to receive between 15 percent and 30 percent of the money recovered for the government. It’s kind of a payment for doing the government’s work. The Qui Tam laws also protect the individual from retaliation for filing or investigating a potential Qui Tam lawsuit. 

Famous Whistleblowers 

Those people considering blowing the whistle on their employers or other organizations would join a long list of well-known whistleblowers: 

Erin Brockovich—exposed Pacific Gas and Electric for contaminating drinking water (although she did not work for that company she was instrumental in exposing its unethical actions and many people consider her a whistleblower) 

Jeffrey Wigand—exposed his company (Brown & Williamson) for intentionally manipulating the effect of cigarettes in nicotine 

Cynthia Cooper—Worldcom (you might remember that little scandal)

Sherron Watkins—Enron (another little scandal you might remember)

Coleen Rowley—FBI (Rowley exposed the FBI for its slow action before the September 11, 2001 attacks) 

W. Mark Felt (Deep Throat)—exposed President Richard Nixon’s involvement in Watergate

Frank Serpico—New York City police corruption.

Tags: Pleading Ignorance, Qui Tam, Whistleblowers

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