How Can Organizations Support Employee Reporting of Workplace Misconduct?
I have previously blogged about the fact that workplace ethics are in decline. Whether it’s instances of the misappropriation of assets, fraudulent financial reports, sexual harassment, workplace bullying, and more, organizations need to tighten their reporting mechanisms to encourage employees to come forward and inform top management of the abuses. One way to do so is to establish an anonymous reporting system, i.e., a hotline. Companies should build cultures of trust and accountability to ward off risking legal exposure.
Employee Reporting of Misconduct
Citing an online survey posted by Inc.com that addresses the views of employees, a significant percentage of workers expressed their views that companies are not supporting their efforts to report wrongdoing within the organization. The highlights from the survey of 1,000 American employees are as follows.
- 22 percent of respondents had witnessed illegal or unprincipled acts on the job.
- 21 percent said they’d felt pressure to replicate examples of misconduct.
- 33 percent of participants said they stayed mum about such abuses out of fear from the consequences of reporting them
“When one-third of American workers fear reporting misconduct, that’s not just a red flag—it’s a systemic failure,” said Tammy Marzigliano, partner and co-chair of Outten & Golden’s Whistleblower & Retaliation Practice, the firm that conducted the survey. “If employees believe that speaking up at work comes with a personal cost, employers should be worried.”
Why Employees Are Reluctant to Report Workplace Harassment
In another survey by HRACUITY.com, despite the growing awareness of various forms of harassment in the workplace, their Workplace Harassment and Misconduct Report found that only 58% of employees who experience or witness unfairness at work never report it to management. The question is why employees do not report the wrongdoing. The findings are as follows:
- Employees often doubt their concerns will be taken seriously. Many stay silent because they lack confidence that leadership will respond fairly or address the issue meaningfully.
- Fear of repercussions keeps people quiet. Worries about retaliation (like job loss, demotion, peer alienation or being labeled “difficult”) make employees reluctant to report mistreatment.
- Lack of clarity and awareness about reporting processes stops reports. When employees aren’t sure who to talk to, how to report or what counts as mistreatment, they often do nothing.
Mechanisms for Reporting Wrongdoing
According to the Ethics & Compliance Initiative’s Global Business Ethics Survey, “many employees face pressure to compromise ethical standards, often within workplace cultures marked by fear.” The result may be that it makes speaking up about the wrongdoing difficult. “Clear escalation pathways are vital, especially when issues arise from within or are observed by those inside or outside the organization.”
Types of Reporting
- Self-reporting. Some individuals report concerns about their own past or current actions or seek clarity on whether they’ve violated a policy. This proactive step helps address issues early and responsibly.
- Internal observer reporting. Colleagues who witness unethical behavior but aren’t directly involved should feel empowered to report without fear of retaliation. Building trust is key to supporting internal observers.
- External observer reporting. Vendors, partners, or community members may notice conduct that requires attention. These stakeholders need accessible, confidential ways to share concerns and feel assured their input matters.
According to Samuel Harris Altman, an American businessman and entrepreneur who has been the chief executive officer of the artificial intelligence research organization OpenAI since 2019, ” The most important thing is that there is a clear reporting structure, and everyone knows what it is.”
Promoting a ‘Speak Up Culture’
As I have blogged about before, a speak up culture “refers to a healthy, supportive environment where team members feel free to share their ideas, opinions, and concerns without fear of retaliation or penalty. Often people associate it with calling out toxic company culture or even an individual member of staff, however it can also refer to people feeling comfortable expressing different ideas or business models that have previously gone unexplored. as speak-up culture, which means to provide a safe space for people to speak up and speak out, where they can feel emboldened to point out both challenging areas and opportunities for new disruptions and innovations. I recommend that “rather than waiting for employees to speak up, leaders should take the initiative and start a structured debate within the organization. It is important to give employees an opportunity to speak up and respond appreciatively when they do.”
Unfortunately, while the many benefits of a speak-up culture are clear, many managers remain hesitant to seek input from their people and are even less likely to really listen when that input is provided. And while disregarding employee input can cause frustration and disengagement of some of your best people (even causing them to leave), actively discouraging employees from speaking up can have even more severe detrimental impacts on the long-term effectiveness of the team and the strategic competitive advantage of the firm.
Building an Ethical Culture
The bottom line is organizations should build an ethical culture that promotes reporting without fear of consequences. It starts with the ‘tone at the top.’ Top management must make it clear in everything they do that a speak up culture is built into the DNA of the organization. To do less can lead to a culture whereby employees start to believe that employers say one thing but act differently.
The underlying ethical value to build a strong speak up culture is integrity. With integrity, employees will act based on principle—knowledge of what’s right and what’s wrong. It’s a principled approach to building a workplace where the reporting of wrongdoing is promoted and where employers act on such reports in a timely manner.
Blog posted by Steven Mintz, PhD, professor emeritus from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Visit Steve’s website to find out more about his activities.