Ethical Engineering: Definitions, Theories and Techniques - Ethical Engineering for International Development and Environmental Sustainability - page 55

organisation. Obviously mistakes and misunderstandings occur in all organisations,
and some problems can be resolved through discussion. However, raising the issues
with the relevant people may not lead to a resolution or there may be problems or
concerns about doing this.
This raises the issue of whistleblowing (Hersh 2002 ). Whistleblowing involves
the reporting of activities of questionable morality and/or wrongdoing which is not
confi ned to illegality. There is some discussion as to whether this term should only
be used when disclosures are unauthorised, take place outside the organisation and
the whistleblowers belong to the organisation they are criticising.
Although focusing solely on considerations of self-interest is unlikely to lead to
ethical behaviour, individuals are entitled to consider the likely costs of ethical
actions to themselves and their families and friends. In some cases, the potential risk
to, for instance, health, safety and the environment will be so great that there is no
question about the ethics of public disclosure, particularly if disclosure within the
organisation has had no effect. However, whistleblowing generally involves confl icts
of loyalties. Whistleblowing can be a risky business and whistleblowers may experi-
ence retaliation and harassment, lose their jobs and become seriously ill due to
stress. Factors to be taken into consideration include the nature and severity of the
problem, the probable effectiveness of disclosure in resulting in measures to resolve
the problem and the likely consequences to yourself, fellow workers, family and
friends. This still raises the issue of your ethical responsibilities in the case of a
severe problem, where you think that disclosure is unlikely to be effective, but could
have severe consequences for you.
Discussion of whistleblowing in the literature has focused solely on individuals
and not considered group responsibilities. However, group action clearly has a num-
ber of advantages. It is likely to be more effective and reduce the jeopardy to the
individual whistleblowers.
The case of unethical behaviour by a colleague can raise particular diffi culties
and confl icts of loyalties, particularly if they do not seem to respond appropriately
when you raise the issue with them. Reporting a colleague could have serious con-
sequences on their career, even if they are exonerated of misconduct (Lubalin et al.
1995 ) and the available evidence may be inconclusive or have several possible
interpretations.
A number of countries now have legislation to protect whistleblowers. For
instance, in the UK, whistleblowers are protected in certain circumstances by the
Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 ( http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/23/
contents ). There are six specifi c categories of what are called qualifying disclosures.
Qualifying disclosures are those which tend to show that one or more of the follow-
ing has occurred, is occurring or is likely to occur in the future:
1. A criminal offence.
2. Failure to comply with legal obligations.
3. A miscarriage of justice.
4. Danger to health and safety of any individual.
5. Environmental damage.