Monthly Archives: October 2013
SEC’s Whistleblower Program Is Waiting to Blow a Big Payout
Stephen Cohen, associate director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office of the Whistleblower, spent the early part of the summer blowing his commission’s whistle and promising big awards on the horizon. However, in its first three years, the SEC has made only two awards. In the first, the whistleblower received $50,000, 30 […]
National Defense Contractors’ Employees Now Have a Whistle
The 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), effective July 1, 2013, now offers employees of subcontractors with defense contracts the protection of the federal whistleblowing laws. Before the new law, subcontractors could only take their complaints of fraud or government waste to their bosses and not to a government office. Enhancing whistleblower protection for subcontractor […]
Whistleblowers Can Whistle Irish Tunes
Ireland’s minister for public expenditure and reform, Brendan Howlin, recently published the Protected Disclosures Bill, 2013, described as an important measure in the battle against corruption. Howlin said that lawmakers want to provide genuine employment and other protections to workers who were penalized or suffered harm for disclosing wrongdoing. Irish whistleblowing wrongdoing The new Irish […]
Courts Conducting the Whistleblowing
Whistleblowing is prevalent in the news. Edward Snowden and Bradley Manning captured our attention. As more claims emerge from workplaces, additional whistleblowing lawsuits are challenging the courts to define and interpret the many relevant laws. Asadi v. GE Energy (USA) Khaled Asadi raised concerns through GE Energy’s internal channels about the company engaging in bribery […]
Whistleblowing to the Tune of $6 Million
In early July 2013, Baxano Surgical Inc., formerly known as TranS1 Inc., agreed to pay $6 million to settle charges that it encouraged doctors to overcharge Medicare and other federal health programs and paid kickbacks to doctors. Baxano did not admit to wrongdoing as part of the settlement. The charges Facing three charges, Baxano agreed […]
Whistleblowing in Malta
Malta’s Parliament approved the country’s long-awaited Whistleblower Act. Effective September 15, 2013, the act provides varying programs of protection for individuals blowing the whistle on corrupt practices. The passage of the whistleblower act was the culmination of more than six years of legislative effort. Providing a new identity to the whistleblower Malta’s whistleblower act outlines […]
Giving Whistles to Guest Workers to Stop Workplace Abuse
Every year, tens of thousands of temporary H-2B workers travel to the United States with dreams of profitable employment that could lead to permanent residency. H-2B employees are temporary, foreign nonagricultural workers. Upon arrival in the country, many H-2B workers find employment abuses that resemble slavery. To understand the extent of the abuses, put yourself […]
