»Nur vier EU-Staaten verfügen über erweiterten rechtlichen Schutz für Whistleblower«

Despite the well-documented value of whistleblowers in exposing and preventing corruption, only four European Union (EU) countries have legal frameworks for whistleblower protection that are considered to be advanced: Luxembourg, Romania, Slovenia and the United Kingdom (UK).

Of the other 23 EU countries, 16 have partial legal protections for employees who come forward to report wrongdoing. The remaining seven countries have either very limited or no legal frameworks.

Moreover, many whistleblower provisions that are currently in place contain loopholes and exceptions. The result is that employees who believe they are protected from retaliation could discover, after they blow the whistle, that they actually have no legal recourse.

Without sufficient legal protections and reliable avenues to report wrongdoing, employees throughout Europe face being fired, demoted or harassed if they expose corruption and other crimes. With would-be whistleblowers inhibited from coming forward, taxpayer money, public property, environmental resources and lives themselves are at risk.

Encouragingly, several EU countries in recent years have taken steps to strengthen whistleblower rights, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania and Slovenia. Countries that have issued proposals or have announced plans for proposed laws include Finland, Greece, Ireland, the Netherlands and Slovakia.

Despite these signs of progress, much remains to be done toward ensuring that whistleblowers in the EU receive the protections they deserve under European and international standards. Political will is lacking in many countries. More whistleblower laws would be in place today had government leaders followed through on their commitments to pass and enforce them.

Transparency International urges all EU countries to enshrine comprehensive whistleblower rights into their laws and begin a public dialogue that will lead to a greater appreciation of whistleblowers as important figures in the fight against corruption. The European Commission should follow the call by the European Parliament in October 2013 to submit a legislative proposal establishing an effective and comprehensive whistleblower protection programme in the public and private sectors.

Whistleblowing carries professional and personal risks. EU citizens and residents should consider using safe avenues to report corruption or other serious wrongdoing in their workplace and seek the best available advice before doing so.

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