Few things are as disturbing as having your mental health status called into question, especially if it is done publicly. Unfortunately, businesses and organizations often go after whistleblowers with precisely this type of attack, attempting to discredit what the whistleblower has said about the organization by alleging that the whistleblower is mentally ill. These allegations of mental illness are often made publicly, in news stories, interviews, and other media releases.
Research into whistleblower cases in the United States, the UK, and Europe has revealed a troubling amount of cases in which firms attacked the mental health of whistleblowers in various ways. This is disturbing, because the retaliation and other effects, including job loss, that many whistleblowers experience do affect people’s mental well-being. Workplace bullying and job loss can contribute to the development of mental illness or adverse health effects like anxiety, depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, and even suicide or attempted suicide. Those mental health effects, which are caused by the mistreatment that the whistleblowers experience at the hands of the organizations that they work for, are unrelated to the mental states of the whistleblowers at the times that they revealed the wrongdoing within their organizations.
When organizations allege that a whistleblower’s claims against them should be discredited because the whistleblower suffers from mental illness, it takes the attention away from the wrongdoing and puts it, unfairly, onto the person who was brave enough to speak out. Some individuals are forced to attend counseling, others get placed into residential mental health programs, and others simply get accused of being mentally ill. It is an unfair, hurtful, and, unfortunately, effective tactic that diverts attention away from the real issue. When individuals and the media pay attention to what the organizations are saying about the whistleblowers instead of to the stories that the whistleblowers are trying to tell, organizational misconduct can continue, unchecked. The people who choose to believe the organization instead of the whistleblower become, in essence, participants in continuing the improper activity. The individuals themselves may unwittingly, and under duress, feed into the pictures that the organizations are trying to paint of them by attempting to aggressively manage their reputations to a point where they do appear to have something strange going on with them.
Barrett Law PLLC: Unwavering Support for Mississippi Whistleblowers
The way in which businesses and agencies treat people who expose their misconduct is nothing short of appalling. From attacks on mental health status to impoverishment through job loss and destruction of reputation, bullying, and other harmful actions, organizations often create mental health crises in individuals who enjoyed a high degree of mental health and personal well-being before they spoke out against their employers. Whistleblowers play a significant role in righting the wrongs that businesses and agencies hope will never see the light of day. If you have questions about whistleblower protection, call the Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney at Barrett Law PLLC today at 1 (800) 707-9577 for an initial consultation.