Whistleblower Protection Act: Coverage, Remedies and Limits
The Whistleblower Protection Act protects federal executive branch employees who disclose violations of law, gross mismanagement, waste, abuse, or dangers to public health and safety. Private sector employees are covered by different statutes, most importantly section 3730(h) of the False Claims Act.
It protects federal employees, not everyone
This is the most common misunderstanding about the statute. The Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989, strengthened by the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012, covers federal executive branch employees and applicants.
If you work for a private company, a university, a hospital system, or a government contractor, this is not your statute. Your protection comes from elsewhere, and knowing which framework applies determines where you file and how long you have.
What a protected disclosure is
A federal employee is protected when disclosing information they reasonably believe evidences specific categories of wrongdoing.
- A violation of law, rule, or regulation
- Gross mismanagement
- A gross waste of funds
- An abuse of authority
- A substantial and specific danger to public health or safety
- Censorship of scientific or technical findings that would cause any of the above
The route for federal employees
A federal employee who suffers a personnel action for a protected disclosure can seek corrective action through the Office of Special Counsel, and in many cases can proceed to the Merit Systems Protection Board.
Deadlines are short compared with private sector statutes, and the procedural path is unforgiving. Getting advice early matters more here than almost anywhere else.
What protects everyone else
Private sector whistleblowers are covered by a patchwork, and often by more than one statute at once.
- False Claims Act section 3730(h), which protects employees, contractors, and agents who act in furtherance of a qui tam case, with reinstatement, double back pay, and attorney fees
- Sarbanes-Oxley section 806, for employees of public companies reporting securities fraud
- Dodd-Frank, for those reporting to the Securities and Exchange Commission
- OSHA-administered statutes covering more than twenty industries including transportation, nuclear, and food safety
- State whistleblower statutes, which vary considerably
The practical difference
The False Claims Act route does something the Whistleblower Protection Act does not: it pays. A federal employee making a protected disclosure gets protection from retaliation. A relator who files a qui tam case gets protection plus 15 to 30 percent of the recovery.
Federal employees can sometimes do both, depending on the conduct and how they learned of it. That is worth assessing rather than assuming.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Whistleblower Protection Act pay an award?
No. It provides protection from retaliation and corrective action. Monetary awards come from the False Claims Act and the SEC, CFTC, and IRS programs.
I am a federal contractor employee. Am I covered?
Not by the Whistleblower Protection Act, which covers federal employees. Contractor employees have protections under 41 U.S.C. 4712 and, if a qui tam case is involved, under False Claims Act section 3730(h).
Can a federal employee file a qui tam case?
Generally yes, though there are limits where the information came from the employee official duties in certain circumstances. This is worth a specific conversation because the analysis is fact dependent.
How long do I have to act?
It depends entirely on which statute applies. Some OSHA-administered provisions run as short as 30 days. False Claims Act retaliation claims generally allow three years. Do not assume the longest window applies to you.
The attorneys who handle these cases
Related reading
Talk to a whistleblower attorney before you report
A conversation costs nothing and is confidential. We will tell you honestly whether what you have describes a case, and what the first-to-file rule means for your timing.