When it comes to whistleblower statistics the truth is that not much is known. Unfortunately, we are at a relatively new level when referring to knowledge about the whistleblower protection act. The statistics below are bound to change that. They should be highlighted more and promoted so that employees would know that they have rights.
Whistleblower Award Stats
- Ever since 1986 the government paid over $4 million to reported whistleblowers.
- The highest payout for one whistleblower was in 2012 under IRS for a huge payment of $104 million.
- Under the False Claims Act we had the highest payout offered for one individual of $96 million in 2010 to a whistleblower in the health care industry. Under the same act the highest payout was $170 million but it was split between a mortgage firm and 3 individuals.
- Zero reward is offered in 80% of the cases that are filed. According to the work of lawyers in Myrtle Beach, SC, after taking out taxes, the average bounty the recipient receives is $150,000.
Statistics About Compliance
- In the year 2015 there were 1.3 reports for every one hundred employees about wrongdoings.
- The US organizations learned that fraud happened in 32% of cases through accidents or through external measures.
Data About Retaliation
- The top Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint appears when discrimination was reported. This covers close to 45% of the cases.
- Whistleblower retaliation reports submitted to the OSHA increased during every single year from the year 2009.
- Internal retaliation reports are normally sustained through special corporate investigations in over 25% of cases.
Securities
- In eighty percent of the SEC whistleblower cases the company was aware that something bad happened.
- Around half of the awards are going to individuals that contribute to existing actions of enforcement. 25 percent will go to the individuals that are submitting information through a joint settlement.
False Claims Statistics
- According to the US government, over $26 billion was recovered thanks to the False Claims act. This happened just in the Obama administration.
- A little over 600 qui tam special lawsuits were filled just in 2015.
- Over 90 percent of the cases are going to be won or settled by the Justice Department. Joining will only happen in up to 25% of the cases. Just 20 percent of the cases that were non-intervened finished being successful.
- For every single $1 that is spent fighting fraud in health care through False Claims act the Government manages to recover 20 times the amount.
Conclusions
As people become more aware of the whistleblower protection act, the number of cases that are going to happen will surely increase. This means that more money is going to be awarded. However, a simple claim never guarantees success, as it was pretty obvious from the statistics mentioned above. This means that whenever faced with such a claim it is really important to work with an experienced attorney. A failure to do this can lead to various problems. At the same time, an attorney is only going to represent you in the event the case can be won.