Protection for Whistleblowers

WHEREAS, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) strives for equality of social and economic rights of all persons through pursuing enactment of federal, state, and local laws securing civil rights; and

WHEREAS, whistleblowers are an integral component in identifying government corruption and fraud within agencies in which they are employed; and

WHEREAS, the Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA) of 1989 was enacted to protect government employees who report illegal activity from employer retaliation; and

WHEREAS, the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) of 2012 amended the WPA to provide greater protections for whistleblowers. The WPEA did this by implementing and enforcing nondisclosure agreements that are consistent with whistleblower protections; and

WHEREAS, the benefit of whistleblower actions extend to other aspects of society beyond government organizations; for example, through its impact on agriculture and hospital practices to protect public health and welfare; and

WHEREAS, the current federal and state whistleblower laws are not adequate in their level of protection of whistleblowers inasmuch as whistleblower complaint case resolutions are often not in favor of the whistleblower; and

WHEREAS, Congress has amended the WPEA to strengthen whistleblower protections to mandating routine oversight to ensure that complainants are protected and any form of retaliation; and

WHEREAS, Congress must re-examine the current protections and address the insufficiencies identified in published research on whistleblower complaints and resulting hostile environments; and

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP reaffirms its support for more protection of whistleblowers at the federal, state and local government levels, the need for more independent oversight to prevent retaliatory behaviors in organizations, and the development of procedures to promote disclosure of misconduct against whistleblowers.