According to a survey, half of UK employees fear losing their jobs if they blow the whistle on illegal activities:

• 51 percent of employees don't feel safe disclosing illegal activities
• 45 percent fear job loss
• 39 percent fear retaliation or bullying
• 36 percent fear confidentiality breaches
• Only 18 percent of employees are confident they could keep their job after whistleblowing
• 50 percent of employees know their organization's whistleblowing procedure, but 10 percent would consider turning to social media.

From the source:

Rachel Suff, senior employee relations adviser at the CIPD, described the findings as "disappointing" and encourages employers to "build a safe working environment for whistleblowing, [which] means having a policy explaining what constitutes whistleblowing and making it clear to employees what to do if they come across malpractice."

"They should train line managers to ensure that matters are resolved in line with the policy, and in a way that will cause the least damage to the organisation. Policies should be fully supported by senior managers and be communicated to all employees," she said. https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/article/1891247/half-employees-fear-losing-job-blow-whistle-survey-finds (Oct. 07, 2024).

Commentary

In the United States, whistleblowers are protected from illegal retaliation. Many of these protections are written into law both on the federal and state level. 

For example:

Many EEO laws also make it illegal to retaliate against an employee who speaks out against discrimination, files a charge of discrimination, or participates in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit. For example, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, allows covered employees to seek relief from workplace retaliation they may face after speaking out. https://whistleblower.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/whistleblower.house.gov/files/Whistleblowing_and_EEO_matters.pdf

One point to remember is that a whistleblower rarely quotes a law or provision of a regulatory compliance when they blow the whistle. Usually, the issue starts off small - as a complaint, concern, or a report of a possible wrong, and not as a federal lawsuit.

Complaints, concerns, and reports of wrongdoing are common. Receiving and reporting issues at work is part of the job. So, treat it as such and report what you know to those in your organization who are authorized to manage such reports.