The expansion of whistleblower protections are to give the Government more insight into issues of concern in the Public Service, according to the Attorney General of the Canadian Province of British Columbia, David Eby.
Mr Eby (pictured) said protections under the Public Interest Disclosure Act now covered most Provincial Tribunals, Agencies, Boards and Commissions, joining about 35,000 Ministry staff and workers at independent offices of the Legislature,
The Act allows employees to share information about possible wrongdoings that affect the public interest with designated officers or the Office of the Ombudsperson without reprisals.
Still more employees are to be covered by the protections later this year as the Government continues a phased-in approach to implementing the Act across the public sector.
Mr Eby said the benefit of implementing the Act in phases was to make sure the training and communications were in place “so these complaints are handled properly and the tools are in place for the Ombudsperson to do proper investigations”.
“Employees at health authorities and the education sector will be covered under the Act over the next two years, Mr Eby said.
The Government’s Budget, tabled in February, revealed there were more than 500,000 people in the public sector, which included the core Public Service, Crown Corporations and Agencies and employees in health, community social services, public education and post-secondary institutions.
“This program is essential for me to have increased confidence that if people see wrongdoing or violation of the Public Service Code, they have an avenue to bring that forward so we can deal with it from a political level,” he said.
“Whistleblower protections also give employees the confidence to come forward with issues of concern.”
A Government employees union lawyer told the Province’s public inquiry into money laundering last year that better whistleblower protections for front-line casino workers might have prevented illegal cash from circulating at gaming venues.
Victoria, 3 April 2022
