Roles and responsibilities
Employees
Employees are encouraged to report known or suspected incidents of improper conduct or detrimental action in accordance with these procedures.
All employees of the MFB have an important role to play in supporting those who have made a legitimate disclosure. They must refrain from any activity that is, or could be perceived to be, victimisation or harassment of a person who makes a disclosure. Furthermore, they should protect and maintain the confidentiality of a person they know or suspect to have made a disclosure.
The Protected Disclosure Officer
The Protected Disclosure Officer will:
- Be a contact point for general advice about the operation of the Act for any person wishing to make a disclosure about improper conduct or detrimental action;
- Make arrangements for a disclosure to be made privately and discreetly and, if necessary, away from the workplace;
- Receive any disclosure made orally or in writing (from internal and external whistleblowers);
- Document any disclosure made orally;
- Impartially assess the disclosure and determine whether it is a disclosure made in accordance with Part 2 of the Act (that is, ‘a protected disclosure’);
- Take all necessary steps to ensure the identity of the whistleblower and the identity of the person who is the subject of the protected disclosure are kept confidential; and
- Forward all protected disclosures and supporting evidence to the Protected Disclosure Coordinator.
The Protected Disclosure Coordinator
The Protected Disclosure Coordinator has a central ‘clearinghouse’ role in the internal reporting system.
He or she will:
- Receive all protected disclosures forwarded from the Protected Disclosure Officer;
- Receive all phone calls, emails and letters from members of the public or employees seeking to make a protected disclosure;
- Impartially assess each disclosure to determine whether it is a public interest disclosure within 45 days of receipt of the disclosure;
- Refer all public interest disclosures to the Ombudsman and notify the whistleblower that the disclosure is a public interest disclosure;
- Notify the whistleblower if he or she concludes that the disclosure is not a public interest disclosure and advise the whistleblower that he or she may request the disclosure be referred to the Ombudsman;
- Be responsible for carrying out, or appointing an investigator to carry out, an investigation referred to MFB by the Ombudsman;
- Be responsible for overseeing and coordinating an investigation where an investigator has been appointed;
- Appoint a welfare manager where necessary to support the whistleblower and to protect him or her from any reprisals;
- Advise the whistleblower of the progress of an investigation into the disclosed matter;
- Establish and manage a confidential filing system;
- Arrange collation and publication of statistics on protected disclosures made;
- Take all necessary steps to ensure the identity of the whistleblower and the identity of the person who is the subject of the protected disclosure are kept confidential; and
- Liaise with the Chief Executive Officer of MFB.
Investigator
An investigator may be appointed by the Protected Disclosure Coordinator to be responsible for carrying out an internal investigation into a disclosure which the Ombudsman has referred to MFB as a public interest disclosure. An investigator may be a person from within MFB or a person engaged for that purpose.
Welfare manager
The welfare manager is responsible for looking after the general welfare of the whistleblower.
The welfare manager will:
- Examine the immediate welfare and protection needs of a whistleblower who has made a protected disclosure and seek to foster a supportive work environment;
- Advise the whistleblower of the legislative and administrative protections available to him or her;
- Listen and respond to any concerns of harassment, intimidation or victimisation in reprisal for making disclosure; and
- Keep a contemporaneous record of all aspects of the case management of the whistleblower;
- Endeavour to ensure that the expectations of the whistleblower are realistic.