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Whistleblowing — the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998
[ch 4: page 60]The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA 98) gives workers legal protection if they raise issues of serious concern about their workplace, including safety concerns, with their employer. It provides protection against victimisation or dismissal in cases where workers “blow the whistle”. PIDA 98 sets out a series of “protected disclosures” for which a worker has protection. These are where:
• a criminal offence has been, or is likely to be, committed;
• there has been a failure to comply with a legal obligation;
• a miscarriage of justice has occurred, or is likely to occur;
• health and safety is endangered;
• the environment is, or is likely to be, endangered; or
• information on any of the above is being concealed.
A dismissal of any worker making a protected disclosure will automatically be unfair, regardless of the length of service, and they can take their case to an employment tribunal.
Former safety rep Laurie Holden won a case against train company Connex in 2002 after he was unfairly dismissed for blowing the whistle about safety. He was awarded £55,000 in compensation at an employment tribunal. The case was important because the award included a payment for aggravated damages and injury to feelings, unusual in an unfair dismissal case. He complained that he had suffered stress and had been victimised for publicising safety risks, including signals being passed at danger.
Holden v Connex South Eastern, ET 2301550/2000
In May 2014, The Supreme Court ruled that a member of a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) law firm can be a “worker” within section 203(3) of the Employment Rights Act 1996 and get protection under whistleblowing legislation. The Supreme Court said that this ruling may be particularly relevant for those in the legal and financial sectors which are tightly regulated.
Clyde & Co LLP and Another v Bates van Winkelhof (2014) UKSC 32