It all starts with an “incident” at work. You witnessed wrongdoing or discovered it after the fact. It can be fraud, unlawful discrimination, product defects . . . and you know you have to do something. What can you do?
It can be useful to get a consensus from your family and those close to you on how to move forward so they understand how they will be impacted by your speaking out.”
1. Make a personal assessment
Use the Personal Assessment template
- What are my goals?
- Am I ready for a long process?
- What is my level of risk tolerance?
- Will I be okay if the disclosure does not have the impact I hoped for?
- What is my emotional support system?
- Where will I find the right lawyer?
- Should I try to find another job?
- What’s my financial situation?
- Am I staying anonymous or going public?
2. Understand your options
Learn about the Whistleblowing Options Overview
- What’s the nature of the incident?
- Does it break a law? A government regulation? A company policy? Shareholders’ disclosure requirements?
- Do you know of similar incidents in other companies? Any lessons learned? Who were the lawyers of the employees who disclosed those incidents?
3. Talk to the right lawyer and ally
- The nature of the incident will guide you to the right lawyer. Think about how you would describe the incident using legal wording. Is it a labor discrimination issue? Did the company defraud a customer or a business partner? Is there a health hazard being covered up? Different lawyers have different specialties.
- Is there a non-profit organization that has experience working with whistleblowers on this particular issue? Does a union advocate on this issue currently?
