RTÉ Brainstorm – How much money does whistleblowing cost people who speak out?
Whitaker Institute members Professor Kate Kenny and Dr Meghan Van Portfliet, of the Work, Organizations and Society cluster, have co-authored an article with Stephanie Casey (Transparency International Ireland) for RTÉ Brainstorm. The piece looks at the cost for the individuals who blow the whistle.
On the 19 January the Whitaker Institute will host a live webinar Whistleblowers After Disclosure: Financial Impacts, Career Paths, and Survival Strategies. For more information and to register click here.
How much money does whistleblowing cost people who speak out?
Maurice McCabe: “the final bill was not disclosed, but significant legal costs were likely involved given the 11 sets of High Court proceedings that had to be dealt with.”
It is more than a year since the bill was settled in one of the country’s most well-known whistleblowing cases. Maurice McCabe suffered serious retaliation and a sustained smear campaign for his efforts to speak up about Garda malpractice. April 2019 saw the former sergeant settle proceedings against the State and Tusla, the child and family agency. The final bill was not disclosed, but significant legal costs were likely involved given the 11 sets of High Court proceedings that had to be dealt with.
Last September an RTÉ Investigates programme showed the high price faced by whistleblowers and their families when trying to expose uncomfortable truths. ESB’s Seamus O’Loughlin described the financial and psychological impact: “I am still out on my own engaged in a legal process that is costing us an absolute fortune”.
Many of us are aware of the experiences of high-profile whistleblowers such as these, but what is the actual cost of speaking out for other whistleblowers? And who pays it? Continue reading…