Whistleblowing: outsource the hotline, own the response

Key takeaways

A whistleblowing hotline gives staff a safe way to report wrongdoing, and an outsourced line can help in a small business, where people may fear being identified. But the response must stay with the business: a senior person independent of the issue decides how to investigate, protects the whistleblower and acts on the findings.

• An outsourced line can offer independence and anonymity.
• A named senior person owns every report and response.
• Workers who make protected disclosures are protected by law.
• Tell the person what happens next, where you can.

Why does the response stay in-house?

Because deciding what to investigate, what action to take and how to protect the person raising concerns are decisions about the business's conduct. An outside line passes reports on; it cannot discipline staff, change processes or correct wrongdoing. Those powers sit with leaders.

• Which business processes should you never outsource?
• Workplace investigations: when an outsider is better

When does an outsourced hotline help?

When staff might not trust an internal route: the concern involves a manager or owner, the business is small enough that people fear being recognised, or teams work across sites and hours. An external line also shows staff and clients that concerns are taken seriously.

• Exit interviews: outsource them for honest answers?

What should a whistleblowing policy say?

GOV.UK guidance encourages employers to have a policy, even though small employers are not legally required to.

• What kinds of concerns to raise.
• How to raise them, including an external route.
• Who receives and owns reports.
• How confidentiality and protection work.
• What feedback the person can expect.

• Company policies: outsource the drafting, own the policy
• Letters from a regulator: who should reply?

How are whistleblowers protected?

Under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, workers who make a protected disclosure, about matters such as crime, danger to health and safety or a breach of legal obligation, are protected from dismissal and detriment because of it. Treating a whistleblower badly can lead to an employment tribunal claim.

• You can outsource the work, never the accountability

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see: small businesses rely on an 'open door' that nobody uses for serious concerns. Adding an external route and naming who will respond increases early reports, which are cheaper to deal with than late ones.

• See client work
• BPO Solutions for UK businesses

Whistleblowing checklist

• Write a short whistleblowing policy.
• Offer an internal and an external route.
• Name a senior person to own reports.
• Protect whistleblowers from detriment.
• Act on findings and record the outcome.

• Employee assistance programmes: support, not a substitute
• Training on your own methods: why it stays in-house

Next step

Ask yourself who a junior employee would tell if they saw the owner doing something wrong. If there is no answer, you need a second route.