Whistle Blower Policy

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2. Tata Motors Whistle Blower Policy has been formulated with a view to provide a mechanism for employees of the Company to approach the Ethics Counsellor/ Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Company if they found any irregularity going on. The audit committee will investigate the matter as a neutral fact finding process. The outcome of the investigation may not support the conclusion of the Whistle blower. The identity of Whistle Blower will be kept confidential and give him all legal protection.

3. Steel Authority of India Limited, Whistle Blower Policy provides safeguard for the protection of employees from reprisal or victimization. SAIL decided to follow the Whistle Blower Policy of Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). So, CVC will received complain and then forwarded to organization for investigation. CVC will not disclose the identity of informant. The commission shall be authorized to call upon CBI or police authority as need arises. If commission thought about legal protection to informant, than they will approach concerned government authorities.

5. Tata Consultancy Service has a Whistle Blower Policy with the necessary mechanism for employees to directly, without fear of reprisal or victimization, report concerns about unethical behavior. If an employee wishes to 'blow the whistle' in the matter of a significant dishonesty or other inappropriate behavior in TCS or any other Tata Company, he or she can make 'protected disclosures' directly to the highest authority for this purpose, namely, the Chairman of the Audit Committee who is a member of the Board of Directors of TCS. This policy protects the rights of the employees who make protected disclosures to the Company. In FY 2006/07, one case under this policy was reported; the Audit committee closed this case after a detailed investigation.

CHAPTER 2

CONCEPTUAL DISCUSSION (BASIC CONCEPTS)

CONCEPTUAL DISCUSSION (BASIC CONCEPTS)

Whistle-Blowing

In its simplest form, whistle blowing involves the act of reporting wrongdoing within an organization to internal or external parties. Internal whistle blowing entails reporting the information to a source within the organization. External whistle blowing occurs when the whistle-blower takes the information outside the organization, such as to the media or regulators. Whistle blowing is an important organizational behavior that can cause quantum change in modern organizations. In the public sector, whistle blowing also can trigger fundamental reforms in the nature and role of government in society.

The concept of whistle-blowing has gained much recognition owing to two of the biggest known Corporate Scandals Enron and Worldcom, Sheron Watkins and Cynthia Coopers came to be known as the two most gutsy women of the century to uncover the fraud and misstatements in the accounts of two the very well known corporations of the United States. As a counterpart to the U.S. corporate fraud, in India protection of Whistle Blowers gathered policy attention due the much controversial murder of Satyendra Dubey who tried to expose the corruption in the Golden Quadilateral Highway Construction Project by writing a letter to the Prime Minister.

Whistle-Blower

A whistle-blower is a person who exposes any kind of information or activity that is deemed illegal, unethical, or not correct within an organization that is either private or public. The information of alleged wrongdoing can be classified in many ways: violation of company policy/rules, law, regulation, or threat to public interest/national security, as well as fraud, and corruption. Those who become whistle-blowers can choose to bring information or allegations to surface either internally or externally. Internally, a whistle-blower can bring his/her accusations to the attention of other people within the accused organization such as an immediate supervisor. Externally, a whistle-blower can bring allegations to light by contacting a third party outside of an accused organization such as the media, government, law enforcement, or those who are concerned. Whistle-blowers, however, take the risk of facing stiff reprisal and retaliation from those who are accused or alleged of wrongdoing.

Because of this, a number of laws exist to protect whistle-blowers. Some third party groups even offer protection to whistle-blowers, but that protection can only go so far. Whistle-blowers face legal action, criminal charges, social stigma, and termination from any position, office, or job. Two other classifications of whistle-blowing are private and public. The classifications relate to the type of organizations someone chooses to whistle-blow on: private sector, or public sector. Depending on many factors, both can have varying results. However, whistle-blowing in the public sector organization is more likely to result in criminal charges and possible custodial sentences. A whistle-blower who chooses to accuse a private sector organization or agency is more likely to face termination and legal and civil charges.

Research has shown that most whistle blowers are not disgruntled employees. In sharp contrast, they rank among the most productive, valued, and committed members of their organizations. A number of studies show that most whistle blowers are normal people who have a strong conscience. Empirical evidence shows that most whistle blowers are committed to the formal goals of their organization, they identify with the organization, and they have a strong sense of professional responsibility. These employees report feeling an “extended sense of responsibility” when they are confronted with moral or ethical dilemmas. Whistle blowers act on attitudes akin to the public-service ethic in another way, for it is well known that whistle blowing involves self-sacrifice. Since employees who report wrongdoing threaten the authority structure of organizations, whistle blowing can result in swift punishment. Such behavior is difficult to explain in utilitarian terms because self- sacrifice is irrational from a narrow means-ends perspective. Whistle blowers are often ostracized, fired, and humiliated. Even so, most employees expect retaliation to be more frequent and severe than it is. It appears that many whistle blowers willingly put them- selves at risk to preserve the common good.

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Source: Godrej & Boyce - Whistleblower Policy, Version 1.1, Updated on 1st September, 2014

The Process of Whistle Blowing

The process