Government Accountability Project and 264 Other Groups Call for Extension of Whistleblower Protections
The Government Accountability Project (GAP), along with 264 other organizations, sent a letter to President Biden and Congressional leaders calling for increased whistleblower protections. The letter cites a Marist poll from September 2020 that indicates high levels of stakeholder support for increasing accountability and public trust in the government through whistleblower protections.
The letter asserts that whistleblower protections have historically received broad, bipartisan support and calls to restore the United States’ status as a world leader in whistleblower protection. The letter makes a call to close loopholes and weaknesses in the current system so that whistleblowers are more protected and not penalized for speaking the truth.
The letter highlights four cornerstones that must exist in any strong whistleblower protection legislation:
First, grant federal employees the right to a jury trial in federal court;
Second, give whistleblowers the right to challenge retaliatory investigations;
Third, extend temporary relief to whistleblowers whenever they prove a prima facie case of retaliation, and;
Fourth, extend whistleblower rights beyond protection from workplace retaliation and give whistleblowers a legal defense against civil or criminal liability.
GAP Legal Director Tom Devine explained in a press release, “The public mandate for stronger whistleblower rights is overwhelming. The politicians need to catch up. America’s pioneering whistleblower laws have become dinosaur rights compared to laws globally. Ours do not compare to 2019 laws passed by the European Union and even Ukraine. Ironically, federal workers with the greatest duty to the public have the weakest whistleblower rights at a time when our nation faces the most severe crises in recent memory.”
The letter was signed by a variety of stakeholders, including immigration groups, consumer protections groups, and professional associations. Groups who signed include Academics Stand Against Poverty, Center for Justice & Democracy, Free Speech For People, and Human Rights Watch.
