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Protect – Speak up stop harm
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Free, confidential whistleblowing advice
Call us on 020 3117 2520 or email us

Protect take part in Mayor of London’s Employment Rights Hub

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Protect are pleased to support workers by taking part in the Mayor of London’s Employment Rights Hub, equipping London’s workforce with knowledge about their rights at work and how to enforce them. In partnership with London-based civil society organisations, the Greater London Authority have produced twelve short videos answering frequently asked questions from Londoners about their … Read more

Whistleblower reveals maternity unit is still failing patients

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The maternity unit at Basildon University Hospital has been ordered to carry out urgent improvements after a whistleblower anonymously raised serious concerns about patient safety to the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Protect Adviser Rhiannon Plimmer-Craig explores what this latest scandal says about the culture of the health sector, how whistleblowers are treated and why whistleblowers … Read more

Report ‘Making Whistleblowing Work’ into ET outcomes finds women whistleblowers less likely to be represented or succeed

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A report by the University of Greenwich examining employment tribunal outcomes between 2015-18 has revealed stark findings for women who whistleblow – that they are less likely to be represented or succeed. The report, Making Whistleblowing Work, commissioned by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Whistleblowing, examined 600 whistleblowing cases. The findings highlight the well-established … Read more

Protect join international campaign to release Jonathan Taylor

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Protect has joined with  an international consortium of whistleblowing, human rights, and civil society campaigners calling for the immediate release of Jonathan Taylor, a whistleblower detained in Croatia as a result of an arrest notice issued by Monaco (see our news story here.…) . The letter  criticises employers who use such legal actions to stop … Read more

Protect succeed in campaign for HMRC to re-open fraud hotline

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Protect has been successful in its calls to see HMRC re-open its fraud reporting hotline which has reopened after being closed since the start of the pandemic in March. We lobbied back in May for HMRC to re-open its fraud hotline, briefed politicians and the APPG (All Party Parliamentary Group) on Whistleblowing on the issue … Read more

Protect support detained whistleblower Jonathan Taylor targeted six years after blowing whistle on corruption

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Whistleblower Jonathan Taylor – who Protect has supported since 2015 – has been arrested at Dubrovnik Airport whilst in Croatia for a week’s holiday with his wife and three teenage children. Jonathan Taylor, 51, a lawyer from Southampton was arrested on 30 July and informed he was the subject of an Interpol Red Notice at … Read more

Food supplier fails to test food hygiene

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Denise (not her real name) was a manager for a food supplier in the airline industry. Denise’s employer had reduced the number of staff on her team which meant that she and her remaining co-workers did not have capacity to conduct food and hygiene tests on goods. This risked leaving the food unsafe to eat so Denise raised her concern to her line manager but she was ignored and later dismissed.

We advised that Denise now contact either the Food Standards Agency or the local authority as the employer was not taking action. We also advised that the concerns would likely fall within the scope of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 so she could bring a legal claim for her dismissal. We highlighted that the short time between raising concerns and being dismissed strengthened her argument that she was dismissed for whistleblowing. We suggested that she seek support from her trade union before submitting a claim in the Employment Tribunal.

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Food producer exposes goods to contamination

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Blake (not his real name) worked as an engineer for a food producer. He was concerned that products were not being properly cleaned during production and goods were being exposed to contaminated water and excess chemicals. He also told us that the warehouse where he worked did not have a safe fire alarm system.

Blake raised his concerns confidentially to the CEO but no action was taken – instead, he was threatened with disciplinary action. Blake raised concerns to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), but the employer was given enough notice of an investigation to superficially address the concerns. Blake was forced to resign and sought advice on making a claim for constructive dismissal. 

We identified that Blake was fast approaching the time limit for bringing a claim so we suggested that he try to argue that he had suffered a continuing act of detriment over many months and seek urgent advice from his Trade Union. The HSE had since revisited the warehouse on several occasions and Blake was satisfied that the regulator was taking action. Blake submitted his claim in the Employment Tribunal in time and his case is to be heard in late 2020.

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Food manufacturer sells out of date and illegal food

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Allan (not his real name) worked for a manufacturer of international food products. He was concerned by a number of incidents that he had witnessed. He told us that use-by-dates on products were regularly removed and changed, and illegally imported products were hidden during inspections from Trading Standards. He was also concerned that colleagues were made to work with chemicals without the proper training and protective equipment. Allan had tried to raise concerns with the owner of the business, but was told that this was the only way that the company could make a profit. Allan called Protect for advice.

We reassured Allan that he had done the right thing by highlighting the concerns to the owner. We suggested that he now speak either to the Food Standards Agency or the local authority who could conduct an investigation without drawing attention to him. He could first have a hypothetical conversation with them to understand what action they might take. We explained Allan’s legal rights as a whistleblower and how he could bring a claim in the Employment Tribunal if he was victimised.

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Care workers help to stop abuse of vulnerable residents

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Simon (not his real name) worked as a senior care assistant. He observed one of the nurses slap residents and, on one occasion, he saw the nurse put his hands around a resident’s neck and force them into their room. Simon could only hear a scream and some banging after this. Simon did not want to raise his concerns to the new manager because other employee’s concerns had been ignored and confidentiality breached.

We discussed Simon’s options and advised that he speak with the deputy manager in confidence. She took his concerns seriously and, soon after, other workers came forward with similar incidents that they had witnessed. The nurse was later convicted and sentenced to two years in prison.

Simon wrote to us some time later and said,

“Your advice and support were invaluable at this time… I never regretted my actions… [My colleagues and I] got through this ordeal by supporting each other and in the knowledge that we were doing the right thing.”

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