Whistleblowing Policy: Legal Requirements for UK Employers

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 protects workers who make qualifying disclosures about wrongdoing in the workplace. A qualifying disclosure — a protected disclosure — covers criminal activity, health and safety breaches, environmental violations, miscarriages of justice, or a cover-up of any of the above. A worker who makes a protected disclosure cannot be dismissed or subjected to any detriment as a result.

For employers, the obligation is to have a clear whistleblowing policy and a safe, confidential route for workers to raise concerns. The policy should set out what counts as a qualifying disclosure, who the worker should report to (typically an independent senior manager or HR), and what happens after a report is made. Workers should know they can also report externally — to HMRC, the FCA, the Health and Safety Executive — without internal disclosure first.

A dismissal following a protected disclosure is automatically unfair and carries uncapped compensation. A detriment claim — demotion, bullying, exclusion — can also be brought. Mellow holds your whistleblowing policy with a record of which employees have acknowledged it. The case management module tracks any concerns raised so that the timeline is clear if a subsequent dismissal or detriment claim is brought.