Hello World Who is General Failure and why is he reading my drive?

A relatively recent addition to our professional vocabulary “Whistle Blowing” is the term given to outcry against corrupt or incompetent behaviour within an organisation. It came into prominece in the late 1980’s following the Challenger disaster in which a space shuttle exploded shortly after take-off killing all seven crew members including a schoolteacher onboard.

What caused the controversy was the fact that engineers with the firm, Morton Thiokol, responsible for the design and operation of the space shuttle’s solid rocket boosters, unanimously opposed the launching because of bad weather conditions and abnormally low atmospheric temperatures.

The reason for their concern was that the O-ring seals on the rockets were not designed to operate at such low temperatures. Despite objections from the engineers, NASA wanted to go ahead with the launch. The engineers at Morton Thiokol continued to protest. However, the engineers were over-ruled by their managers, and the launch went ahead.

After the disaster, senior management at NASA denied that they had known about the protest and said that, had they known about it, they would have halted the launch. One of the engineers subsequently went public, to ‘set the record straight’. He was lionised by the press for his public-spirited defence of the integrity of the engineers and the public good, however, he lost his job with Morton Thiokol and was unable to subsequently get other employment on the NASA program.

Ethical Considerations for Potential Whistle Blowers:

1. Beneficence - Is there really a serious matter of public interest? Is there risk of harm to the public?
2. Respect for Persons - Are actions open to public scrutiny? Are your actions based on reliable evidence or just hearsay? Are they honest and transparent?
3. Justice - Are your actions fair to all parties? Have you exhausted all the normal channels? Are you observing the rights of due process and allowed the accused an opportunity to defend themselves?
4. Proportionality - Will your action do more good than harm?

Thinks you need to think about:

1. Evidence is correct, reliable and traceable.
2. Are you objecting to illegal/immoral conduct?
3. Discuss the action with close stakeholders, including your family
4. Exhaust organisational procedures for dealing with complaints and objections
5. * Decide whether to act publicly or annonymously.
6. Document every action you take
7. Dont spread your heat to your colleagues, friends or other stakeholders without explicit consent. Make sure they are aware of these factors for consideration.
8. If you are fired and resolt to publicity, recognise that your right of free public discussion might be limited - reporters are sometimes sensationalist and may not express your views accurately.
9. Consider you legal options, especially in the evidence of immoral or illegal conduct.
10. Appreciate that your hands will get dirty whatever you do.

Not to scare you off, but here are some statistics on the adverse consquences Whistle Blowers in the United States have faced.

90% lost their jobs or were demoted
27% faced lawsuits
26% faced psychiatric or medical referral
25% admitted to alcohol abuse
17% lost their homes
15% were subsequently divorced
10% attempted suicide
8% went bankrupt.

- John McMillan

Recognising the public service performed by whistle-blowers, the public in the United States demanded legal protection for ‘whistle-blowers’. Similar demands for ‘whistleblower protection rights’ are now being made all over the world.

Good luck.