Hello, jaystallard-ga!
I have compiled some articles from reputable sources on the
repurcussions faced by whistleblowers who reveal corruption or faulty
practices within their organizations.
===
"Time Magazine's Persons of the Year - Cynthia Cooper, Coleen Rowley
and Sherron Watkins," by RICHARD LACAYO AND AMANDA RIPLEY. Dec. 22,
2002
http://www.whistleblowers.org/html/TIME.htm
"..whistle-blowers don't have an easy time. Almost all say they would
not do it again. If they aren't fired, they're cornered: isolated and
made irrelevant. Eventually many suffer from alcoholism or
depression."
"With these three, that hasn't happened, though Watkins left her job
at Enron after a few months when she wasn't given much to do. But ask
them if they have been thanked sincerely by anyone at the top of their
organization, and they burst out laughing. Some of their colleagues
hate them, especially the ones who believe that their outfits would
have quietly righted all wrongs if only they had been given time.
"There is a price to be paid," says Cooper. "There have been times
that I could not stop crying."
===
From "WHISTLEBLOWING makes for great TV. But the aftereffects can be
brutal," by Cora Daniels. Fortune Magazine. April 2002.
http://www.soeken.lawsonline.net/hell.html
"Randy Robarge, a nuclear power plant supervisor, never intended to be
a whistleblower. To Robarge, raising concerns about the improper
storage of radioactive material at ComEd's Zion power plant on Lake
Michigan was just part of doing a good job. The 20-year veteran was so
respected when it came to safety issues that ComEd used him to
narrate the company's training video on safety, which is still used
throughout the industry. So he never expected that speaking up would
end his career."
"At first the harassment was subtle. He says he was routinely denied
days off and asked to cover for employees who were out. Co-workers
kept their distance, and supervisors began criticizing his work. Three
months later Robarge was out of a job."
"It's a living hell," says Robarge, 49, who supports himself with
savings and odd jobs. "This is my livelihood, what I love to do. But
I'm off limits. No one wants to touch me. I was labeled as a
whistleblower."
"Unfortunately Robarge is not alone. About half of all whistleblowers
get fired, half of those fired will lose their homes, and most of
those will then lose their families too, says C. Fred Alford, author
of Whistleblowers: Broken Lives and Organizational Power. "For every
Sherron Watkins, there are 200 to 300 whistleblowers you never hear
about who don't fare so well." Overall, 90% of whistleblowers can
expect some kind of reprisal--public humiliation, isolation, career
freezing, firing, blacklisting--from their company. "The forms of
organizational harassment are limited only by the imagination," says
Tom Devine, head of the Government Accountability Project, a
whistleblower advocacy group. Its Whistleblower's Survival Guide is a
mainstay in legal circles."
(Read further...
===
"Police Whistleblowers," by Jaime Adame. Gotham Gazette. June, 2004
http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/crime/20040602/4/995
"Eleven years ago, Detective Investigator Jeff Baird thought the
people in power would protect him. His testimony exposing misconduct
within the Internal Affairs Division was a key part of the Mollen
Commission. Baird told city officials how officers within his division
would create secret files designed to hide evidence that pointed to
corruption and misconduct within the department."
"I was only interested in positive change," said Baird, 49. "I didn?t
think the retaliation would come."
"But the retribution that followed would last the rest of his career -
and beyond. Baird was shunned by many of his fellow officers and
harassed by others. Transfers to different units quickly stalled a
once promising career, according to Baird, who also said there was
even a warning that his life was in danger."
"Baird was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder by his
psychologist and applied to receive a special accident disability
pension. The police medical board disputed this, however. The case
went to court, with city lawyers arguing that Baird only deserved
ordinary benefits."
In April, a Manhattan judge sharply criticized the city for denying
Baird?s claim, calling its arguments "pitiful."
"In short, NYPD subjected [Baird] to an insidious 'death of a thousand
cuts' in retaliation for his work on the Mollen Commission, with the
Medical Board's refusal to even address the cause of his condition
being the last gash. This the court will not condone.," Judge Louis
York reportedly said in his ruling in favor of Baird."
===
"Whistle-blower receives honors and resentment," by Jim Lynch. Seattle
Times of Olympia Bureau. January 3, 1999
http://www.soeken.lawsonline.net/ruud.html
"Still, Ruud was laid off from Hanford in 1988 and shunned at another
weapons site before resigning. He fought in court, claiming unlawful
retaliation for whistle-blowing, and eventually got a job back at
Hanford."
"Meanwhile, Ruud, 43, still blows the whistle. During the past two
years, he and Hanford scientist John Broeder proved that radioactive
fluids leaking from massive storage tanks have spread much farther
than Hanford authorities conceded."
"Ruud says his recent efforts to expose that problem further alienated
him at Hanford. "I am absolutely resented in every way by my
superiors," he says."
===
Whistleblower feels isolated," by Tanya Giles. Herald Sun. May 14, 2004
http://news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,9554635%255E2862,00.html
"THE first prison officer to become a whistleblower with legal
protection in Victoria felt bullied, isolated and alone, Parliament
has been told."
"Opposition corrections spokesman Richard Dalla-Riva told the Upper
House the prison officer needed the full support of Government so
future whistleblowers would have confidence in the system."
===
"Lawyer: state officials retaliated against whistleblower." Associated
Press. May 10, 2004.
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=27357&format=
(Summarized due to copyright restrictions:)
Bijan Mohammadipour, director of engineering at the Bureau of State
Office Buildings, warned of asbestos and fire safety problems at the
Saltonstall building in Boston. Mohammadipour was punished for his
actions, recommendations were ignored, and he was left "out of the
loop" as his company proceed with other unsafe projects. His office,
which moved into a garage, was later moved back into an asbestos-laden
building while others moved out.
Mohammadipour did not leave his job. However, numerous health effects
have resulted from the attack on his reputation and criticisms of his
job performance.
===
"Whistleblower Rights Crucial to Homeland Security," by Cathy Harris.
Federal Times. May 12, 2003
http://federaltimes.com/index.php?S=1847640
"Surveys consistently conclude that 70 percent to 90 percent of
whistleblowers report subsequent retaliation. Says Cathy Harris "I
personally blew the whistle on the Customs Department in 1998 because
of the abusive practice of racially profiling international travelers,
especially black women. attribute my survival so far to national
publicity.... But many whistleblowers never have that chance. And even
with a spotlight on the issues, the repercussions often are the same:
bankruptcies, divorce, loss of health and life insurance, loss of
health and spirit, and sometimes worse."
===
"Jeffrey Wigand." PBS.org 1998
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/settlement/deal/people/wigand.html
"Jeffrey Wigand, a Ph.D. in Biochemestry, was a Vice President of
Research for Brown & Williamson Tobacco. After being fired from the
company, he began talking to CBS News "60 Minutes." He was sued by
Brown & Williamson, and his personal life fell apart. Wigand became a
high school science teacher, and he stands as the highest level
whistleblower ever to emerge from within the tobacco industry."
===
"Limits of a whistle-blower culture - Post Enron, tattletale stigma
fade, but risks still outweigh rewards," by Jennifer LeClaire.
Christian Science Monitor. Oct. 2002.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/1021/p17s01-wmcr.htm
"Mr. Doyle was "blacklisted" by Hydro Nuclear Services, a division of
Westinghouse Electric. Just last month he asked the Supreme Court to
overturn enforcement of a waiver he signed in which he agreed not to
file a claim against his former employers. He says they provided bad
references in retaliation for his blowing the whistle on plant safety
back in the late 1980s."
"And, of course, most people are familiar with Karen Silkwood, who
died under mysterious circumstances in 1974 while reportedly gathering
evidence of poor safety standards at Kerr-McGee's plutonium production
plant in Crescent, Okla."
"Karen Silkwood and Sherron Watkins were heralded for doing a great
service," says Steven Kohn, attorney and board chairman of the
National Whistleblower Center (NWC) in Washington, D.C., a nonprofit
advocacy organization that supports employee whistle-blowers. "But
it's hard to find a job after that, because nobody wants to hire a
whistle-blower."
"Many firms apparently don't want to retain whistle-blowers, either.
More than half of workers who flagged incidents of unlawful conduct in
2002 were fired, according to a NWC study in September. Many others
said they faced unfair discipline."
"Fear of retaliation from co-workers is another barrier, say experts,
including more subtle forms of payback, such as being ostracized. "The
worst thing you can be accused of these days is not being a team
player," says James Fisher, head of St. Louis University's Emerson
Center for Business Ethics."
===
"People who blow whistle 'get crucified'," By Dave Moniz, USA TODAY. 12/17/2001
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/12/18/guard-whistleblow.htm
"Cases reviewed by USA TODAY support Ruttenberg's contention that
even legal officers or the Guard's own investigators can suffer when
they look into corruption."
"Lt. Col. Gordon Schukei, a Guard lawyer in Wyoming, found his job
threatened in 1998 after he recommended that Adjutant General Ed
Boenisch be investigated for his part in a scheme to improperly
promote a subordinate. Schukei, recently assigned to National Guard
headquarters in Washington, declined to discuss the case. But Guard
members familiar with the incident confirm that Schukei barely
survived Boenisch's attempts to fire him before Schukei transferred to
Washington. An Air Force investigation later determined that Boenisch
had wrongly promoted the officer Schukei had complained about and that
Boenisch had "condoned the backdating and falsification of official
transfer and promotion orders."
"A separate Air Force investigation found that Boenisch had improperly
retaliated against Lt. Col. Roger Nyberg, another Wyoming Guard
officer. Nyberg had tried to report misconduct against senior officers
in the Wyoming Guard."
"Scott Winne, a private attorney in Maine and a former Air Force judge
advocate general officer who represented Nyberg, says he has never
encountered a worse case of retribution against an employee. The Air
Force inspector general found that Boenisch had improperly used
discharge boards, tried to stop Nyberg from reporting misconduct and
that he "abused his authority" to try to remove Nyberg from the
Guard."
"It was textbook retaliation," Winne says."
===
"Whistleblowers say exposing an employer can deal a career-crushing
blow," by T. Shawn Taylor. Chicago Tribune staff reporter. August 18,
2002
http://www.soeken.lawsonline.net/chicago.html
At the minimum, whistleblowers should expect to lose their jobs,
advocates say. Whitehurst, 54, who sued the FBI and agreed to retire
in 1998 as part of a settlement, wanted to continue working at the
agency. But the FBI would rather pay Whitehurst his full salary for
the rest of his life to stay at home."
"It's the end of their life as they know it," Whitehurst said of
whistleblowers like himself. "Whether they succeed or fail, they can
never be allowed back in that family that they exposed."
"Randy Robarge, a former radiation protection supervisor at Com Ed's
nuclear power plant in Zion, has been unable to land a job in the
nuclear power industry since he blew the whistle in 1996 on alleged
procedural violations he feared could lead to a catastrophic event."
"I was doing my job. Under no circumstances did I think I was a
whistleblower," he said.
"The plant was fined after Robarge reported radioactive material found
on a lunch table. When he was told by his department head to skirt
reporting procedures, he refused and was fired, he said."
"Whistleblowers in the nuclear power industry are protected under the
Energy Reorganization Act. Robarge sued Com Ed and won a settlement.
But now, he's an untouchable. A separate lawsuit accusing Com Ed of
breaching the original settlement and blacklisting Robarge is pending,
said Kohn, his attorney."
"Am I going to have to carry this my whole life? I never want to go
through something like this again, and I hope I don't have to," he
said."
"Robarge said his wife and family have stood by him 100 percent. But
Keith Schooley's 13-year marriage didn't survive his whistleblowing
activities at Merrill Lynch in 1992."
"Schooley, a financial consultant on the fast track at the Enid,
Okla., office, was fired after he took allegations of cheating and
fraud all the way to the board of directors. Schooley said he couldn't
stand by and watch unethical behavior."
"The only thing I made the mistake on was trusting the company to take
the appropriate action," he said.
"Whistleblowers are often misjudged. People view them as traitors or
finks, when all they really want is to fix the problem, Kolesnik said.
"They tend to be the kind of people who have to do the right thing.
They can't look the other way," he said."
"Depression is common, said Don Soeken, who runs a retreat for
whistleblowers called the Whistlestop in White Sulfer Springs, W.Va.
He also operates a whistleblower hot line called Integrity
International. A two-time whistleblower, Soeken said if someone came
to him before they blew the whistle, he would advise them not to. But
most, like himself, would not only blow the whistle once, they'd do it
again and again and again."
He added: "They're more concerned with trust and honesty than their
own health and safety. `I did the right thing. I can sleep at night.
My conscience is clear.' "
==
"Retaliation against Whistleblowers: The Case of the University of
South Florida." Kristin Shrader-Frechette. Published in Philosophy and
Social Action, Vol. 26, No. 4, October-December 2000, pp. 43-56
http://www.smarterscience.com/shrader.html
"By attempting to correct the grant-ledger problem internally instead
of "going public," Shrader-Frechette was following one of the
classical ethical norms for whistleblowing: behaving as a loyal
employee and allowing employers the chance to correct the problem
privately.[4] She was naive, however, to believe that her going
through channels would protect her from USF retaliation. Because
employees typically are politically and economically more vulnerable
than employers, when whistleblowers privately alert employers to a
problem and allow time for it to be corrected internally, employers
can engage in both coverup and in preemptive retaliation. A better
option might be for whistleblowers anonymously to reveal the problem
to employers, wait for them to correct it, but report it to
authorities, again anonymously, if the problem is not corrected within
a reasonable time."
"After she raised the problem of grant skimming in 1991,
Shrader-Frechette never again received a substantial salary increase
at USF, despite the fact that her annual evaluations were always at
the highest level (outstanding). The provost, Tom Tighe, repeatedly
overruled her department chair or college dean when they sought to
give her significant salary increases."
"When large state institutions like USF can use their political power
and almost-unlimited taxpayer money for corrupt purposes -- to attempt
illegally to demote whistleblowers, to tell PR lies, to hire expensive
attorneys so as to disobey public-records laws, to conduct
"surveillance" on whistleblowing faculty, and to employ retaliation --
the deck is stacked against whistleblowers. In spring 1998, when the
stalking continued, Shrader-Frechette was forced to leave the
university, her home, and her family in order to escape severe stress
and retaliation."
==
"Whistleblowers in Environmental Science, Prevention of Suppression
Bias,and the Need for a Code of Protection," by Elihu Richter, Colin
L. Soskolne, Joseph LaDou and Tamar Berman. Proceedings: Investigating
Research Integrity (2001)
http://ori.dhhs.gov/multimedia/acrobat/papers/richter.pdf
This report about whistleblowing contains short profiles of a series
of whistleblowers and the ramifications they faced for their actions.
Excerpts follow:
Cases of suppression by a governmental institution
--------------------------------------------------
"Cate Jenkins, an environmental scientist with the US EPA, claimed
that chemical industry studies had consciously minimized the hazard of
dioxin. She received a written reprimand for writing down what she
knew about the history of the dioxin incinerator regulations, and was
transferred from her position."
"Omar Shafey, an epidemiologist in the Florida State of Health, was
forced to leave his position after publishing an epidemiologic report
on complaints of acute illness in residents exposed to drift from
aerial spraying of malathion, used to control the Medfly."
"Desi Mendoza Rivero, a Cuban physician, was imprisoned after he
issued statements regarding an epidemic of dengue fever."
"Grigory Pasko and Alexander Nikitin, government scientists in Eastern
Europe, were accused of treason and subjected to physical abuse after
they reported dangers from nuclear waste in Murmansk. From newspaper
reports, it appears that Pasko?s subsequent acquittal was reversed.
"Melvin Reuber, a toxicologist at the Frederick Cancer Research
Facility in Maryland (which is part of US National Cancer Institute)
studied links between pesticides and cancer. As a result of his
studies, he is one of the world?s leading critics of pesticides. In
1981, he was subjected to an attack on his work and his credibility
that shattered his career."
"In the United Kingdom, a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) memo
indicates that several researchers and health and safety activists who
exposed poor health and safety practices were targeted for special
surveillance.
Cases of suppression by an academic institution
------------------------------------------------
"John Coulter, a medical researcher at the Institute of Medical and
Veterinary Science in Adelaide, South Australia was dismissed from his
post after releasing a report that ethylene oxide was
mutagenic ."
"Robert van den Bosch of the University of California, Charles Lincoln
of the University of Texas, and Robert Fleet of Texas A&M University
all suffered abuse because of their research on the hazards of
pesticides."
"David Kern, an occupational physician and epidemiologist at Brown
University MedicalSchool, received notice that his tenure would not be
renewed and his clinic closed after he reported numerous cases of
interstitial lung disease in nylon flockers at Microfibres."
"In Israel, Dr Jerome Westin was greylisted for any governmental or
academic appointments after publishing findings on massive
contamination of the nationwide milk supply with organochlorines."
Cases of suppression by industry
---------------------------------
"In the 1940?s, Randolph Byers, the Harvard pediatrician, was sued for
defamation and damages by the Lead Industries Association for
publishing findings on brain damage from acute lead poisoning in
children from nibbling paint chips."
"Doug Johnson, a safety specialist for Tatitlek, Chugach, and Chenega
Corporation in Alaska was fired after raising environmental concerns
regarding Alyeska?s oil spill response program in Prince William
Sound."
"Myron Mehlman, a Mobil Oil Corporation toxicologist, was fired after
advising a Mobil subsidiary in Japan to stop selling gasoline with
hazardous levels of benzene, a known carcinogen.
"Alexandra De Blas of Australia was threatened with a suit for
defamation by a mining company when she attempted to publish a thesis
about environmental impact of it soperations."
"Dr Yoram Finkelstein, an Israel neurotoxicologist with important
publications on organophosphates and lead, is currently the target of
a SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit against Public Protestors) lawsuit for
libel after writing a medical opinion on the health risks from
emissions of hexavalentchromium, Cd, lead, Ni, and other pollutants
from an aluminum foundry."
Survey Results
--------------
"At the Annual Conference of the International Society for
Environmental Epidemiology (ISEE) held in 1999 in Greece, the
Committee on Ethics and Philosophy distributed a questionnaire to the
delegates. Out of 10 individuals who completed the questionnaire, five
reported harassment following publication of research findings on
health risks from environmental exposures. The following is a brief
description of these cases:
"Male MD, age 47, a scientist in a major Cancer Institute in Italy,
experienced ostracism after publishing findings on asbestos exposure
in a petroleum refinery and lung cancer."
"Female MD, MPH, age 60, was threatened with loss of her job after
publishing findings on TCDD exposure and cancer."
"Male MPH, PhD., age 53, experienced ostracism and the threat of job
loss after publishing findings on cancer mortality in Vietnam veterans
exposed to Agent Orange."
"Two Female MDs, investigators age 59 and 47, experienced both
ostracism and confiscation of data after publishing findings one
thylene oxide exposure and breast cancer."
(See article for footnote references)
====
"Whistleblower sues District's AIDS office: Gay employee alleges
retaliation, seeks $2 million," by Lou Chibbaro Jr. Washington Blade.
December 19, 2003
http://www.aegis.com/news/wb/2003/WB031208.html
"A gay employee with the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration has filed a
lawsuit charging that officials at HAA and the D.C. Department of
Health retaliated against him for testifying at a City Council hearing
in May that HAA is plagued by "gross mismanagement."
"Michael Snoddy, a public health analyst at HAA since 1998, alleges in
his lawsuit that DOH and HAA officials violated the city's
Whistleblower Protection Act by orchestrating a pretext to downgrade
his job performance rating because of his Council testimony."
"Plaintiff, Michael Snoddy, alleges that he was intimidated and
threatened, that his job performance was downgraded, that concerns
about his job performance were lodged wrongfully, that his civil and
constitutional rights were violated, and that he was defamed and
retaliated against for protected disclosures he made to the public,
press and the D.C. Council," the suit states."
"In his Council testimony, Snoddy said that Lewis put in place a
"culture of intimidation and fear of retaliation" aimed at
discouraging HAA employees from going public about management problems
that Snoddy claims were widespread within HAA. Snoddy said Lewis and
other high-level HAA officials threatened to fire employees if they
breached the "confidentiality" of information that could cast HAA in a
bad light."
===
"Energy Criticized on Whistleblowers," by MATT KELLEY, Associated
Press Writer. May 24, 2000.
http://www.whistleblower.org/article.php?did=389&scid=124
"Nuclear site workers who call attention to safety problems face
retaliation by contractors, who are in turn aided by the Energy
Department in fighting employee complaints, whistleblowers and House
lawmakers say."
"Two whistleblowers told the House Commerce Committee's panel on
oversight and investigations Tuesday that their employers retaliated
against them after they raised pollution and safety concerns. In one
of the cases, the Energy Department paid $500,000 in legal and
settlement costs for a company that fired a crew of pipefitters who
raised safety concerns at the Hanford nuclear site in Washington
state."
"Joe Gutierrez, a whistleblower at the Los Alamos National Laboratory
in New Mexico, said he has spent about $50,000 of his own money to
press his case. Gutierrez said he got an unfavorable job evaluation
after he challenged lab officials' claim that the New Mexico lab did
not violate the federal Clean Air Act."
"The University of California runs Los Alamos and two other nuclear
labs, while Fluor Hanford Inc. is responsible for cleaning up Hanford.
The Labor Department ruled the contractors improperly retaliated
against Gutierrez and Walli, but in both cases the legal fight over
the allegations continues."
"They (contractors) can just bleed these poor individuals dry,"' said
Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo. "As far as we can see, DOE takes no steps
to protect these whistleblowers."'
Additional Reading
====================
"FBI Urged to Protect Whistleblowers," by Curt Anderson. Associated
Press. Nov 11, 2002 http://www.whistleblowers.org/FBI11-11AP.htm
"Minneapolis whistle-blower may face dismissal from FBI," by Greg
Gordon. tar Tribune Washington Bureau Correspondent. Published Oct 23,
2002
http://www.whistleblowers.org/html/star10-23.html
"Whistleblower fears he will lose job," by JASON BEATTIE.
Scotsman.com. April 2, 2004
http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=16&id=374442004
===
I hope these articles are helpful. If you need additional
clarification, please don't hesitate to ask and I will be happy to
assist further if I can!
umiat
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