Essential points

• Whistleblowing essentially deals with protecting workers who expose wrongdoing within organisations, the protections are day one rights as no qualifying period is required.

• A whistleblower is protected in law if the wrongdoing they disclose is in the public interest – this depends on the Chesterton test. This considers the number of people affected, the nature and impact of the wrongdoing and who the wrongdoer is.

• To be protected, the whistleblower must be an employee, a worker, freelancer a trainee, an agency worker or a member of a Limited Liability Partnership. Certain individuals, including the genuinely self-employed, trustees and volunteers, are not covered by PIDA. 

• Reporting a criminal offence, a health and safety risk, a risk to the environment, a miscarriage of justice, a company breaking the law, or covering up wrongdoing all count as whistleblowing, but personal grievances do not. 

• Whistleblowers making a disclosure that qualifies for protection can bring a tribunal claim if they are treated unfairly or lose their job for doing so.  They can either bring an unlawful detriment or unfair dismissal claim.  

• Whistleblowers can report wrongdoing to their employer or to a prescribed person or body such as the Equality and Human Rights Commission.