July 30 was National Whistleblower Day and a number of federal agencies celebrated the day by highlighting the importance of whistleblowers and educating employees about their whistleblower rights.
In April, National Whistleblower Center (NWC) sent letters to federal agencies calling for the celebration of National Whistleblower Day 2024 on July 30.
For the past ten years, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed an annual resolution designating July 30 as National Whistleblower Day. The resolution encourages federal agencies to celebrate by informing employees of their whistleblower rights and “acknowledging the contributions of whistleblowers to combating waste, fraud, abuse, and violations of laws and regulations of the United States.”
“We hope to see each agency participate this year,” wrotes NWC Executive Director Siri Nelson in the letters. “Widespread acknowledgement across the federal government of the importance of whistleblowers could change the culture of retaliation against whistleblowers that persists today.”
While representatives from a number of agencies attended the National Whistleblower Day celebration on Capitol Hill, other agencies released statements or social media posts about the day.
Office of Special Counsel
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel released a statement by Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger honoring Tuskegee syphilis study Peter Buxton and female athlete whistleblowers including the U.S. gymnastics team.
Dellinger further called for the permanent recognition of National Whistleblower Appreciation Day.
“On National Whistleblower Appreciation Day, we honor these heroes and all whistleblowers who come forward to expose wrongdoing and protect others from harm,” Dellinger said. “And it is past time to make NWAD permanent.”
Dellinger also made a speech at the National Whistleblower Day celebration on Capitol Hill.
Office of Personnel Management
The OPM Acting Director and OPM Inspector General released a joint statement celebrating National Whistleblower Day.
“The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the OPM Office of the Inspector General (OIG) value the role that whistleblowers play in government oversight,” they said. “We applaud the courageous employees who come forward to make disclosures.”
The statement also pointed OPM employees to the OPM OIG Whistleblower Protection Coordinator for general information about their rights under the whistleblower protection laws.
Department of Agriculture
The USDA released a statement outlining the history behind National Whistleblower Day and highlighting the National Whistleblower Day event on Capitol Hill. The statement also discussed the agency’s whistleblower protections.
“The USDA Whistleblower Protection Coordinator (WPC) is committed to educating USDA’s workforce about whistleblower retaliation and associated protections,” the statement reads. “The WPC is responsible for informing departmental and agency employees about prohibitions on retaliation/reprisal for protected disclosures. The WPC educates those who have made, or are contemplating making, a protected disclosure about the rights and remedies against retaliation for such disclosures.”
Internal Revenue Service
The IRS released a statement “recogniz[ing] the important role whistleblowers play in supporting the nation’s tax administration.” The IRS Whistleblower Program has paid over $1.2 billion in whistleblower awards and led to the collection of over $7 billion from non-compliant taxpayers.
“The IRS appreciates the valuable contributions that thousands of whistleblowers have made to help bolster the fair and effective enforcement of our nation’s tax laws,” said IRS Whistleblower Office Director John Hinman. “Information from whistleblowers continues to be an incredibly effective aid to IRS compliance efforts, and we are committed to improving our whistleblower program by increasing our capacity to use high-value whistleblower information effectively, awarding whistleblowers fairly and as soon as possible, and keeping whistleblowers informed of their claim’s status and the basis for IRS decisions on claims.”
Hinman also gave a speech at the National Whistleblower Day celebration on Capitol Hill.
Department of Labor
The Department of Labor released a tweet which read:
On National Whistleblower Day, we thank the courageous people who have spoken out about illegal and unsafe conditions in the workplace. Learn more about your rights as a whistleblower and our role in protecting you at whistleblowers.gov.
Social Security Administration
The Social Security OIG released a tweet which read:
National Whistleblower Day is celebrated on July 30 to commemorate the passage of the first whistleblower law on July 30, 1778. The law was passed after 10 sailors and marines blew the whistle on harmful fraud and misconduct. #WhistleblowerDay24
Department of Justice
The Department of Justice OIG released a tweet which read:
Today on National #Whistleblower Appreciation Day, we recognize whistleblowers for the important service they perform when they come forward and report wrongdoing. #NWD2024 Learn more about whistleblower rights and protections on our website: oig.justice.gov/hotline/whistl
Environmental Protection Agency
We’re celebrating Whistleblower Appreciation Day 2024 with a new campaign to raise awareness of whistleblower rights and protections. Join us this week and every Wednesday to learn about whistleblowing. #WhistleblowerAppreciation #WhistleblowerWednesday