Why is whistleblowing still such a taboo in 2024?

Allan, S ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7169-0761, Johnson, J and Hartley, J, 2024. Why is whistleblowing still such a taboo in 2024? In: BAM2024: 38th Annual British Academy of Management Conference, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, 2-6 September 2024.

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Abstract

The recent Post Office scandal has been called ‘the biggest miscarriage of justice in UK history.’
“More than 900 sub-postmasters and postmistresses were prosecuted for stealing money because of incorrect information provided by a computer system called Horizon” – Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56718036 last accessed 12th February 2024
Prosecutions took place between 1999 and 2015, and of those prosecuted, most have been left in financial ruin as they used their life savings to pay back the money that the Post Office said they had stolen. Many also served custodial prison sentences. All suffered the humiliation of being wrongly accused and tarnishing their reputations within their communities.
Throughout all this time, one worker (a junior-level employee at Fujitsu, the software supplier for Horizon) dared to speak up about the computer system failings he knew about, yet possibly hundreds of other workers and Executives across the Royal Mail Group, Post Office, Fujitsu (the IT Company that developed and supported Horizon), the National Federation of Sub-postmasters and Second Sight (a forensic investigative team) remained silent. Lawyers and Auditors acting for the Post Office also, in public, did not voice their concerns.
This PDW aims to understand the barriers and consequences for individuals speaking up when they see institutional wrongdoings and why company Executives should foster a culture of openness and transparency even when this might result in highlighting systemic organisational failings.

Item Type:	Conference contribution
Creators:	Allan, S., Johnson, J. and Hartley, J.
Date:	September 2024
Identifiers:	Number Type 2268571 Other
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Business School
Record created by:	Jonathan Gallacher
Date Added:	06 Nov 2024 11:11
Last Modified:	06 Nov 2024 11:11
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/52513

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