A&R Team Digest - Blowing the Whistle
I recently represented a social worker that had blown the whistle.
Shortly after blowing the whistle, he was suspended for ‘failing to follow management instructions’ and ‘acting in a way that could bring the organisation into disrepute’.
What followed was a three and a half year long disciplinary process (yes, you read that right). The employer never did confirm what instructions the social worker had failed to follow. The social worker also endured a four-year regulatory investigation that led to a final hearing. At the final hearing, the regulator determined that the social worker had done nothing wrong.
Ultimately, this man never went back to social work – he could not face returning. The whole experience had traumatised him and had a huge impact on his health. Despite this, he was very clear that he was proud to be a social worker and wanted to maintain his reputation and registration. He wanted to challenge his employer and clear his name with the regulator. He did both successfully. He repeatedly told me that he would have given up if he had not had representation.
Social workers have a professional duty to report concerns about practice or organisational wrongdoing. When you sign up to be regulated, you sign up to this professional duty and should not ignore it. However, it can be difficult to blow the whistle or raise concerns.
There are laws in place to protect Whistleblowers. Employers should have a whistleblowing policy and employees should not suffer detriment or be dismissed because they have blown the whistle. Unfortunately, employers sometimes do not act lawfully, like in this case. Challenging this conduct alone without advice or representation can be extremely frightening and overwhelming.
BASW members are eligible to access our Advice and Representation (A&R) service (subject to having been a member for one month and the issue not being pre-existing issue or having arisen in that initial month). If you are facing poor treatment at work after raising concerns, I strongly recommend getting advice from the A&R team immediately. Our team have advised and represented many Whistleblowers. We can advise you whether your actions are likely to amount to whistleblowing and help you to challenge your employer’s conduct in the best way. We can also advise and represent you if you do face an investigation from your regulator.
If you are a BASW member, please get in touch here. New and non-eligible members can also access guide sheets written by our team on a range of employment issues, including whistle blowing.
