Report Calls on Australia to Reward Whistleblowers

The Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC) recently published a report calling on the Australian government to introduce a federal whistleblower rewards scheme, arguing that Australia risks falling behind other major economies without stronger incentives for those who expose wrongdoing.

The report, released as Treasury reviews the private sector whistleblower protection regime reformed in 2019, points to the US experience as evidence of the policy's potential. Whistleblower reward schemes have helped US authorities recover more than US$88 billion from wrongdoers since their introduction, with over US$11 billion paid to whistleblowers. The UK has most recently adopted a similar model, offering those who report serious tax avoidance or evasion up to 30 percent of the tax collected. The HRLC argues that internal whistleblowers can provide an “investigative shortcut,” offering a more cost-effective alternative to traditional enforcement methods, and that data from existing schemes shows they result in increased disclosures and prosecutions.

The report also highlights the limitations of Australia's current framework. Despite laws protecting those who speak up about wrongdoing, they have been “depressingly under-utilised,” the report notes. In three decades, only a single whistleblower has received court-ordered compensation for harm caused by speaking out. “Whistleblowers make Australia a better place, but the cost of speaking out in Australia is just too high,” said Kieran Pender, Associate Legal Director at the HRLC's Whistleblower Project.

Allan Fels, former chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, argued that the time for debate has passed. “Plain and clear — rewards schemes are good policy that have been repeatedly proven to work around the world,” he told The Point. “Our policymakers must now look towards designing a whistleblower rewards scheme that works for Australia.”

In 2023, we published "The Era of Accountability," a Deeper Dive report discussing a global trend of employees holding their employer accountable for conduct that does not align with their own values. When a firm's culture does not make employees feel safe to 'speak up' about concerns internally, or when they feel retaliated against for having done so, they are increasingly prepared to speak out externally.