Thursday, November 1, 2012

Advantages Of A WhistleBlower Hotline

By Tonia Michael


Whistleblowing is defined as the act of alerting the authorities to illegal and immoral behavior . In 2002 the Congress Sarbanes-Oxley Act became law, making it a legal requirement for all US public companies to enact a WhistleBlower hotline. Private companies are exempt from this legislation. The hotline system is designed for fraud detection, to protect organizations from wrongdoing and to expose unethical treatment of employees.

Under the new regulations, firms must set up staffed telephone hotlines and provide e-mail access. Once an allegation has been made, a protocol should be in place to conduct the investigation. The accused parties should not be informed before the investigation is complete and a specified corrective course of action is enacted. Whistleblowers are the heroes and heroines in the modern era of fighting corporate corruption.

Whistleblowers who alert the authorities to unethical or illegal corporate activity are the new heroes and heroines of the modern world. They can lift the lid on corruption and expose it to the scrutiny of the public. This can then put a stop to practices that are detrimental to the consumer.

Counterfeit parts are also a problem for the military. Soldiers put their lives at risk through less than reputable weapons and gear, and losses can be prevented by these hotlines. The Sarbanes-Oxley act puts fail-safes in place to ensure that immoral practices do not allow sub-standard equipment to be supplied to the fighting forces.

The medical world is an area that can see great benefits via WhistleBlower hotlines. False claims and scams, whether performed by insurers, patients or doctors can be exposed. This can even save lives, as counterfeit or unsafe equipment or drugs can be fatal. Keeping quiet about malpractice can prove lethal. Moreover, medication that is prescribed unnecessarily as well as misuse of the Medicare and Medicaid programs cost the state millions of dollars. Blowing the whistle on such practices is good for the entire country.

The military arena also suffers from the dangers of counterfeit goods. The lives of military personnel are put at risk because of sub-standard weapons and equipment. Using WhistleBlower hotlines can save lives here too. Fail-safes are in place under the Sarbanes-Oxley act which means that the immoral supply of less than reputable gear to the fighting men can not go unexposed.

Employees who become privy to improper conduct and disapprove can bring such activity to the public's attention by speaking out. The project which is in place for this has a mission to promote government and corporate accountability by defending whistleblowers, advancing free speech occupational and helping citizen activists to feel empowered. Potential whistleblowers can safely ensure that transgressors are held accountable, prosecuted and punished, ensure no further damage is done, and provide the chance for wronged parties to recover damages.

The mission of the project is to promote government and corporate accountability. It is designed to offer protection to the whistleblower, to advance occupational free speech, and to empower citizen activists. A WhistleBlower hotline is a proven deterrent and help to make sure that law-breakers are made subject to prosecution and punishment. Wronged parties are more likely to gain reparation now that it is so much easier to give an anonymous tip-off.




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