Whistleblower
Dilemma
Balancing Ethics, Loyalty, and Consequences
What is a
Whistleblower Dilemma?
A whistleblower dilemma occurs when an
employee (whistle-blower) discovers
unethical, illegal, or harmful practices
within their organization.
The whistle-blower has a choice between
staying loyal or blowing the whistle.
They must decide whether to:
Report the wrongdoing to external authorities
(protecting public interest but risking personal
consequences).
Stay silent (protecting their job and loyalty to
the company, but enabling unethical behavior).
PERSONAL
LOYALTY
PUBLIC
INTEREST
Key Ethical
Principles Involved
1 LOYALTY
2 RESPONSIBILITY
3 INTEGRITY
4 PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
Pros & Cons of Whistleblowing
PROTECTS PUBLIC SAFETY
PROS- UPHOLDS ETHICAL STANDARDS
ENCOURAGES TRANSPARENCY
COULD PREVENT LARGER SCANDALS
RISK OF LOSING JOB
CONS- MAY FACE RETALIATION
LEGAL AND FINANCIAL STRESS
MAY BE BLACKLISTED IN THE INDUSTRY
Ethical Framework for
Decision-Making
UTILITARIAN APPROACH: WHICH ACTION RESULTS IN
THE GREATEST GOOD FOR THE GREATEST NUMBER?
DEONTOLOGICAL APPROACH: WHAT IS YOUR DUTY,
REGARDLESS OF CONSEQUENCES?
VIRTUE ETHICS: WHAT ACTION ALIGNS WITH
PERSONAL INTEGRITY AND MORAL CHARACTER?
Example to Whistleblower Dilemma
You work at a company where you discover that your employer
is illegally dumping toxic waste to save money. Reporting this to
the authorities would likely lead to massive fines, layoffs, and
the possible closure of the company — including the loss of jobs
for you and hundreds of coworkers.
The dilemma:
Report the company to protect the environment & uphold
the law, but risk your job & the livelihood of many others.
Stay silent to protect your job & your coworkers’ jobs, but
contribute to environmental harm and unethical behavior.
Your Ethical Analysis:
Identify Stakeholders: Environment, public health, your
family, co-workers, company.
Consider Consequences: Reporting = layoffs, legal action.
Staying silent = environmental harm, personal guilt.
Apply Framework:
Utilitarian: Reporting prevents future harm to the
environment and public.
Deontological: You have a duty to follow the law and
report wrongdoing.
Virtue Ethics: An honest, courageous person would
speak up.
Final Decision:
Report the incident to authorities
anonymously if possible, to
balance safety and ethics.
Advocate for internal reform
before escalating.
Real-Life Case
Study:
The Theranos
Whistleblower
what happened?
Shultz discovered
Theranos was faking
blood test results.
Tyler Shultz, Theranos Co.
an employee
Dilemma
Should he report the fraud ? Should he stay silent ?
risking legal action protect his job
career damage avoid conflict
personal attacks
What he did:
Reported the fraud to
authorities.
Faced retaliation from Theranos,
legal pressure, and personal
stress.
OUTCOME:
His whistleblowing helped expose one of
the biggest corporate frauds in history.
Public health was protected.
However, Shultz’s personal and
professional life was severely impacted.
Conclusion
Whistleblowing dilemmas highlight the tough balance
between personal ethics and loyalty to one’s
employer.
While individuals must stand up for what is right,
companies also have a duty to build ethical cultures
where employees feel safe reporting wrongdoing
internally.
True ethical progress happens when transparency,
accountability, and integrity become core values —
reducing the need for whistleblowing at all.
Thank You
Presented by
TEENA SHARMA
BHAVYA AGARWAL
SUHANI AWASTHI
LOVISH ARORA
HARSH PANDEY
