Stephen Kohn is president of the National Whistleblower Center, a D.C. nonprofit group that since 1988 has fought for government and private employees who expose wrongdoing.
Why do we need a whistle-blowers center?
Whistle-blowers are instrumental in detecting waste, fraud and criminalities. They’re the most successful single group in uncovering fraud. They’re the No. 1 group. Protecting them is vital for the economy and government accountability.
Are whistle-blowers more honored in word than in deed?
Yes. No one likes to have the whistle blown on them. We’re still in a situation or a culture where it’s an emotional response, and it’s retaliatory. Nobody has come to accept that having employees turning in wrongdoing is a good thing.
Are you disappointed that President Obama stripped out whistle-blowers’ protections in the recent signing statement on the budget?
Yes. Obama on the campaign trail promised whistle-blower protection. What he did was consistent with past administrations, but it’s not good. We view the rights of whistle-blowers to go to Congress as essential to democracy. Period.
What’s the most egregious retaliation you’ve ever seen?
I had a case which a person went from a corporate executive … to having to lift boxes for Manpower. We eventually won his case, but it took 10 years. To see someone who was at the pinnacle of his career and be reduced to poverty is as bad as it gets. It’s the one case that always just sticks in my mind. To see him go from that position, all the way down to poverty and that position … it’s so devastating. It’s almost mind-boggling. When you try to tell people what happened to you, most people just don’t know somebody who’s suffered this, and it’s viewed as something that doesn’t happen in America.
Where should people go if they think they’ve uncovered wrongdoing?
There’s no doubt they should go to the Web site, whistleblowers.org.
