Verschiedene Gruppen in den USA machen sich derzeit für die Aufnahme von Whistleblower-Schutzklauseln in das geplante 700 Mrd. $ Gesetz zur Stützung der US-Finanzmärkte aus, hier ein Auszug aus einem entsprechenden Aufruf:
A strong bipartisan coalition of groups, spanning the ideological spectrum, is urging Congress to include strong whistleblower protections for federal government and corporate employees.
To read the Progressive Caucus Letter to House Leadership, Click Here.
To read the Open Letter to Congress from Conservative Organizations, Click Here.
To Read a Letter Signed by more than 225 public interest groups from across the political spectrum, Click Here.
You, too, can tell Congress to Enact Strong Whistleblower Protections!
As the financial bailout bill is debated in Congress it has become increasingly obvious that strong oversight of Wall Street and financial institutions is urgently needed. Congress should enact strong whistleblower protections as part of any bailout package to help provide effective oversight of any bailout.
Take Action! Tell Congress to Enact Strong Whistleblower Protections!
Federal employees are in the best position to expose fraud or misconduct concerning the expenditure of bailout funds and the oversight or management of assets that could be acquired by the government under the bailout law. However, currently, federal employees must bring their whistleblower claims to the Merits Systems Protections Board (MSPB), an outdated and inadequate system where less than 5% of employees win their whistleblower case. Legislation already passed by the House in March 2007 (H.R. 985) would correct those flaws by expanding coverage to all employees and by providing for court access and jury trials.
Corporate whistleblower protections are also needed in the bailout bill to protect the private employees working in the financial industry. Numerous studies have shown that whistleblowers are in the best position to protect Americans from financial fraud. Earlier this year, a study published by Price Waterhouse showed that while professional auditors detected 19% of the frauds on private corporations, whistleblowers exposed 43%. Moreover, the corporate executives surveyed estimated that whistleblowers saved their shareholders billions of dollars.
Just recently, Congress enacted strong consumer safety whistleblower protections, which include the right to federal court access and jury trials. Those same rights are desperately needed to protect both federal employees and other private sector workers under the bailout law.
Our country is currently in the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression and we need comprehensive whistleblower protections in the bailout bill to ensure that history does not repeat itself again.
Contact Congress and tell them that whistleblowers MUST be protected!