would you be a whistleblower?

[dunya]

"A whistleblower is anyone who has and reports insider knowledge of illegal activities occurring in an organization. Whistleblowers can be employees, suppliers, contractors, clients or any individual who somehow becomes aware of illegal activities taking place in a business either through witnessing the behavior or being told about it."

this is something that intrigues me and I've discussed it plenty of times with friends and it always leads to someone getting angry.

what would you do if you became aware that another employee or your employer was violating legal or ethical standards? would you speak out or do you feel like you owe it to your employer to be loyal to them first?

[Long Con]

Depends on how I feel about the company, employer, and how I feel about the the employee.

Also depends on how severe the ethical violation is.

[S~V~S]

Yeah, I agree, it depends on the variables.

Like I work in a car dealership, my office is in the shop in the parts department. I am surrounded all day every day by mechanics and parts guys. They *regularly* violate all kinds of things they are not supposed to. They talk about hot girls in specifics, they use, um, non-pc language on a regular basis, etc. It was not as bad when I first came back here, but I guess they have gotten used to me being here, and my office doesn't have a door. for the most part it doesn't bother me, I have nice noise cancelling headphones. It is mostly one guy that is the problem, he is loud and has a mean streak, he is very obnoxious and borders on hateful at times.

BUT BUT BUT if I reported him to management, *EVERYONE* in the shop would know it was me who did it. And I would be ostracized; no one would talk to me, and coming to work would be miserable. I have to walk past literally 20 guys on my way to my desk. For all that that one guy is a dick, I really enjoy most of my co workers.

So it would have to be super egregious on his part for me to take it to my boss, like the "N" word or something equally hateful directed at someone specific, not just as a generality.

[S~V~S]

And re illegal activities, it depends *how* illegal, and who is being hurt.

[dunya]

why would everyone know it was you? because you're the only female who would take issue with it, you think?

do you think your upper management is even aware of him?

I am in the same boat as you; I work in construction and real estate and like 90% of my coworkers and clients and contractors are male. It's hard sometimes, really, because I don't want to be alienated as you say, but when they are a group of guys making "guy jokes", I've had to step away from the lunch room area plenty of times before I lost my cool. Instead of going to management, I confronted one really obnoxious sexist and he laughed it off when I appeared offended (he literally said: "women's only power is their pu**ies"). He makes other derogatory remarks about how women argue all the time, and women always have to be right, etc. and the men laugh along, telling stories about how their wives always have to have the last word in every argument. I just ignore that sort of thing. But that time, I really felt violated and I know my manager is aware of how obnoxious this guy is, so since he has to report to me for signatures and purchases, every time he addressed me I ignored him until he finally apologized and admitted he crossed a line. I can take guy talk, but I can't take someone saying something like that and looking at me as the only woman at the table. I accepted his apology, and he has toned it down (around me), but I doubt his opinions have really changed.

[dunya]

My bigger concern at the time was how none of the other guys spoke out about it and I was left fending off his obnoxious remarks on my own. Only till much later, after I'd taken a stance, did 1 of the men approach me and agree that what he said was insensitive and rude. I asked him if he'd ever confronted the guilty party about it and he shook his head and said he didn't want to cause a scene or get involved, but apologized "on his behalf" to me. There were 5 other men at the table and none of them bothered to say anything.

then again, I live in rural Sweden right now, where 95% of the town I live in are registered to vote for the neo-nazi political party and self identify as rednecks, so I can't really expect a female-friendly environment.

[speedchuck]

I've never worked in that kind of environment, but that's sickening. I can't imagine being that disrespectful, especially toward my own wife. But then, I was raised in a very sheltered Christian environment, and was taught not to say anything nasty about anyone, much less a group of people, or half of the human race. Some people are raised in nastiness.
I understand why you'd have to leave the room, and I'm sorry you're in that kind of situation.

As for whistleblowing, it depends. If the ethical/legal violation was nitpicky, or if the situation was accidental, I'd let it slide, maybe mention it to the person. (I've heard someone in my workplace use the word "retarded" to label someone who did something dumb. Non-PC, offensive to those with mental illness, but they meant nothing by it and nobody was offended. I said nothing.)
But if the behavior was repeated, or malicious, offensive to those present, disruptive, dangerous, felony-related, etc., I would absolutely turn it over to higher authorities. I just don't see much of that.

[Ricochet]

Yes.

[Golden]

I think there are smart, effective ways to be a whistleblower, which I have actually used in the past. But generally speaking, yes I'd be a whistleblower, but there's ways to do it that preserve your career and reputation, and ways that destroy it. I've seen people whisteblow in an extreme way for something that isn't extreme, and it's damaging.

[S~V~S]

why would everyone know it was you? because you're the only female who would take issue with it, you think?

do you think your upper management is even aware of him?

I am in the same boat as you; I work in construction and real estate and like 90% of my coworkers and clients and contractors are male. It's hard sometimes, really, because I don't want to be alienated as you say, but when they are a group of guys making "guy jokes", I've had to step away from the lunch room area plenty of times before I lost my cool. Instead of going to management, I confronted one really obnoxious sexist and he laughed it off when I appeared offended (he literally said: "women's only power is their pu**ies"). He makes other derogatory remarks about how women argue all the time, and women always have to be right, etc. and the men laugh along, telling stories about how their wives always have to have the last word in every argument. I just ignore that sort of thing. But that time, I really felt violated and I know my manager is aware of how obnoxious this guy is, so since he has to report to me for signatures and purchases, every time he addressed me I ignored him until he finally apologized and admitted he crossed a line. I can take guy talk, but I can't take someone saying something like that and looking at me as the only woman at the table. I accepted his apology, and he has toned it down (around me), but I doubt his opinions have really changed.

Oh wow, that is similar, except I live in a place where that kind of thing is taken pretty seriously. The guy at my job could lose his job over it. He has a family. And that's why I would be ostracized. I know it's his fault, not mine, but if he lost his job people would blame me, and they would know it was me because most men in my industry would never report it, they go along to get along. I have seen the guys pretending to smile at his jokes, and looking embarrassed. They call him names behind his back when talking to me, but they would not report him. If he were to be reported, everyone would know it was me. Oh yeah.

Your situation sounds kind of worse though, in that this is the norm apparently for where you live. It is impressive that you have escaped those attitudes yourself; when you grow up in redneck places it often is ingrained, even in the girls. What kinds of laws does Sweden have about gender discrimination and sexual harassment (every time that guy I work with makes a joke about Asian porn, or a crack about some girls ass, I get internal satisfaction from knowing I COULD get him fired if I wanted to) but not every place has that kind of law. I know the Nordics in some cases have some fairly progressive laws, but that doesn't mean they are enforced.

I would do some online research if I were you as to what the laws are, and the repercussions of reporting him., and if there would be meaningful consequences to it. Then you need to think about what the repercussions would be, and decide if it is worth the trade off.

That's what I did. I decided to go to Best Buy and buy the headphones rather than to my bosses office.

[S~V~S]

ALSO, remember that you don't want some asshole with a gun (I assume that rednecks in Sweden have guns?) mad at you for, in his eyes, ruining his life cause you have no sense of humor. It's sad that you, or anyone, should have to take that into account, but it is my experience that assholes just get assholier when you poke them with a stick.

And save your money for a small flat in the city

[JaggedJimmyJay]

I have before. Reputation is meaningless.

[S~V~S]

I have before. Reputation is meaningless.

I certainly mean this with all respect, and I have an idea of your life philosophy when it comes to things like this, but that is a very man thing to say, "Reputation is meaningless". Sometimes, reputation is all. Although I don't know that this is one of them. I think she just needs to get the dust of that place off of her shoes.

But it is pounded into us from childhood, that girls need to protect their reputation and our good name (and not just in sexual matters, although that is a large part of it).

[Golden]

Yeah, I don't agree reputation is meaningless. It can stay with you for life. You can only believe reputation is meaningless if you or someone close to you hasn't experienced the very real world effects that reputational damage can do.

My livelihood depends on my reputation, but I also firmly believe whistleblowing will enhance your reputation with the right people if done in the right way in many situations - but there are times, like SVS's, when there's probably simply no way to do it, other than slowly expressing your own views about what is appropriate and hoping they are embraced.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

I have before. Reputation is meaningless.

I certainly mean this with all respect, and I have an idea of your life philosophy when it comes to things like this, but that is a very man thing to say, "Reputation is meaningless". Sometimes, reputation is all. Although I don't know that this is one of them. I think she just needs to get the dust of that place off of her shoes.

But it is pounded into us from childhood, that girls need to protect their reputation and our good name (and not just in sexual matters, although that is a large part of it).

Oh I don't expect others to share my apathy, and I don't fault those who don't. I'm weird.

[S~V~S]

Me too

[dunya]

It is impressive that you have escaped those attitudes yourself; when you grow up in redneck places it often is ingrained, even in the girls.

I did not grow up here. I moved a little over 2 years ago for a job. Pays well, but makes me question my sanity sometimes.

What kinds of laws does Sweden have about gender discrimination and sexual harassment

Pshhh, plenty. If I was in Stockholm, or any civilized city in Sweden, this wouldn't be tolerated. The further out from major cities you are, the more backwards people are. I could complain to my boss and he'd issue some kind of formal complaint and warning against him, but I don't feel like it's worth it considering I have to go to work there every day. If he was abusing a lot of people and personally harassing me, I would have taken different action. I guess I'm not a very good whistle blower, but I just think you should pick your fights and I'd rather handle someone like that by myself than be known as that girl who tattletales on coworkers. It's hard enough being taken seriously in this industry, so you have to have thick skin.

[S~V~S]

It is impressive that you have escaped those attitudes yourself; when you grow up in redneck places it often is ingrained, even in the girls.

I did not grow up here. I moved a little over 2 years ago for a job. Pays well, but makes me question my sanity sometimes.

What kinds of laws does Sweden have about gender discrimination and sexual harassment

Pshhh, plenty. If I was in Stockholm, or any civilized city in Sweden, this wouldn't be tolerated. The further out from major cities you are, the more backwards people are. I could complain to my boss and he'd issue some kind of formal complaint and warning against him, but I don't feel like it's worth it considering I have to go to work there every day. If he was abusing a lot of people and personally harassing me, I would have taken different action. I guess I'm not a very good whistle blower, but I just think you should pick your fights and I'd rather handle someone like that by myself than be known as that girl who tattletales on coworkers. It's hard enough being taken seriously in this industry, so you have to have thick skin.

Ah, OK. You grew up somewhere sane, lol. So you're a woman in a mans field and ALSO in a foreign culture? I would be leery of speaking out in those circumstances, as well, although what you are experiencing seems more personal that what I deal with. That is generic; this seems both generic and more directed at you if I am reading this correctly.

Do you feel this individual would be damaging to a future female employee less strong than yourself? If so and it doesn't get worse, I would say when you are planning to move on (it sounds like this is a professional way station for you rather than a final destination) you might consider it then.