What protection do whistleblowers have if they are dismissed in the UK

Whistleblowing: making a disclosure about wrongdoing in the workplace: is legally protected in the UK. If you have been dismissed, treated detrimentally, or forced out of your job because you reported a concern about your employer, you may have strong legal remedies available, including an employment tribunal claim with no qualifying period of service required.

What Is a Protected Disclosure?

Not every complaint made at work is legally protected as whistleblowing. To attract protection under the Employment Rights Act 1996, your disclosure must be a "qualifying disclosure": meaning it must relate to specific types of wrongdoing:

• Criminal offences
• Failure to comply with a legal obligation
• Miscarriages of justice
• Danger to health and safety
• Damage to the environment
• Deliberate concealment of any of the above

The disclosure must also be in the public interest. This means personal grievances about your own employment (such as a pay dispute that affects only you) are generally not protected.

Who Can You Make a Protected Disclosure To?

You can make a protected disclosure to your employer, to a prescribed regulator (such as the Health and Safety Executive, FCA, or CQC), or in some cases to wider parties such as the police or media: though the latter carries additional requirements.

What Protections Do You Have?

If you make a protected disclosure, you are legally protected against:

• Dismissal: you can bring an unfair dismissal claim with no qualifying period of employment
• Detriment: any action short of dismissal that harms you as a result of blowing the whistle (demotion, disciplinary action, exclusion, harassment)

Whistleblowing dismissal claims are treated as automatically unfair: you do not need to prove the dismissal was unreasonable, only that the protected disclosure was the reason or principal reason for the dismissal.

Is There a Qualifying Period?

No. Unlike standard unfair dismissal claims, whistleblowing dismissal claims do not require two years of continuous employment. You can bring a claim from day one of your employment.

What Compensation Is Available?

Compensation for whistleblowing dismissal is uncapped: unlike standard unfair dismissal where the compensatory award is limited. In serious cases involving significant financial losses, awards can be substantial. Interim relief: a temporary order requiring your employer to continue paying your salary while the claim is heard: is also available in whistleblowing cases.

What Should I Do If I Have Been Dismissed After Blowing the Whistle?

• Keep a record of all communications relating to your disclosure and any subsequent treatment
• Contact ACAS promptly to start the early conciliation process. The three-month time limit applies
• Take legal advice from an employment barrister as soon as possible

Whistleblowing cases can be complex and the drafting of the tribunal claim requires care. Specialist legal advice significantly improves the prospects of a successful outcome.

Summary

Whistleblowers have strong legal protections in UK employment law. A protected disclosure must relate to specific types of wrongdoing and be in the public interest. Dismissal or detriment in response to a protected disclosure is automatically unlawful. There is no qualifying period of employment. Compensation is uncapped. If you have been dismissed after blowing the whistle, take legal advice immediately and contact ACAS within three months of the dismissal.

For specialist whistleblowing advice, contact us today.