Survival Tips for Whistleblowers

[NOTE: This section is a summary of A Survival Guide for Whistleblowers: Courage Without Martyrdom a handbook by the Government Accountability Project (GAP). To order the complete handbook, contact GAP (their address is listed in the "Resources" section, below).]

Every year, thousands of Americans witness wrongdoing on the job. What they witness may jeopardize the health, safety or lives of others. They may see managers at a nuclear facility violate a safety code, a chemical company dump hazardous waste unlawfully, or a food processing plant attempt to sell contaminated, dangerous meat to consumers.

Most employees remain silent in the face of such misconduct. They conclude that it is not their concern. Or that nothing they can do would stop the wrongdoing. Or that they can't afford to cause problems on the job. Others choose to bear witness and speak out. They seek to make a difference by "blowing the whistle" on unethical conduct in the workplace. Under the Whistleblower Protection Act, whistleblowing is defined as disclosing information that an employee reasonably believes is evidence of illegality, gross waste, gross mismanagement, abuse of power, or substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.

Whistleblowers' actions may save lives or billions of dollars. But rather than receive praise for their integrity, they are often targeted for retaliatory investigations, harassment, intimidation, demotion, or dismissal and blacklisting. Pentagon whistleblower Ernie Fitzgerald describes whistleblowing as "committing the truth," because employers often react as if speaking the truth about wrongdoing were committing a crime.