Whistleblower Protection
The Issue
Public or private sector employees who report illegal, unethical or abusive institutional behaviour typically face retaliation, which can include discipline, ostracism, social stigmatization, demotion, dismissal, and criminal charges. Laws in Canada to protect whistleblowers are largely ineffective and sometimes counterproductive -- the legal forum created by the laws can be a vehicle for formally endorsing the retaliation.
Why It Matters
Whistleblowing serves vital institutional and public purposes. It allows issues of concern to be identified and resolved internally, where possible, and, where not, it brings alleged wrongdoing to public attention so problems can be corrected and future harm avoided.
Our Work
The tasks of the Centre for Free Expression Whistleblowing Initiative include:
- Organize public events on whistleblowing;
- Evaluate existing whistleblowing laws in Canada;
- Make recommendations for new / improved Canadian whistleblowing laws;
- Maintain an up-to-date database of major whistleblowing cases in Canada;
- Conduct benchmarking research in Canada on organizational whistleblowing; practices in both the public and private sectors;
- Assist with the adoption of effective public and private sector organizational whistleblowing policy and procedures;
- Establish an advice line to support whistleblowers;
- Publish a regular Whistleblowing Newsletter;
- Represent Canada in the Whistleblowing International Network
News: Clarifying the Ontario Security Commission Whistleblowing Policy
The Centre for Free Expression has urged the Ontario Security Commission to clarify its policy guidance as to when in-house counsel would be eligible for the whistleblowing award. We endorsed the submission of Bersenas Jacobsen Chouest Thomson Blackburn LLP.
News: CFE's David Hutton publishes commentary on federal whistleblowing report
David Hutton, CFE Senior Fellow, comments on recent Commons committee report on whistleblower protection and what the Federal Goverment should do next.
News: CFE calls for action on new federal whistleblowing report
The Centre for Free Expression has encouraged the Trudeau government to implement the recommendations of today’s standing committee report on improving Canada’s federal whistleblowing law.
The Government Operations Committee report recommends a number of changes to provide genuine protection to federal civil servants that blow the whistle on government wrongdoing.
“The report’s recommendations go a long way to fixing a law that has failed to protect federal whistleblowers since it was introduced ten years ago by the Harper Government,” said David Hutton, Senior Fellow at the Ryerson University Centre for Free Expression and one of Canada’s leading experts on whistleblowing.
Podcast: Don’t Shoot the Messenger! The Importance of Whistleblowers in the Public and Corporate Worlds
Whistleblowers typically pay a huge price for their openness and honesty. Why is that? What can be done to protect them and the public interest.
News: The Hill Times publishes CFE Senior Fellow David Hutton’s critical examination of federal whistleblower protection
CFE Senior Fellow David Hutton has published an excellent 4-part series in The Hill Times that critically examines federal whistleblower protection in Canada.
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