National Whistleblower Day, also known as National Whistleblower Appreciation Day, is a holiday observed on July 30th that shows appreciation for whistleblowers. Whistleblowers are individuals who put themselves at personal risk to protect the American people from malfeasance and fraud by reporting activities and behaviors that are illegal and immoral. It’s a day on which everyone can reflect on the whistleblowers who have worked to make the world a better place.

The History of National Whistleblower Day

The history of this holiday goes back to July 30, 1778. This is when the first whistleblower laws were enacted during the American Revolution. The law was passed when a group of ten whistleblowers reported abuse of power and wrongdoing committed by their superior officer in the Continental Navy. To commemorate this day, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution that marked July 30th as a commemorative day for whistleblowers.

Facts About Whistleblowers

Even though we don’t have the space to list the accomplishments of every whistleblower who helped to blow the lid off corruption and malfeasance, we can list some of the statistics we’ve learned about them below.

• While professional auditors can detect 19% of the fraud committed by private corporations, whistleblowers can expose over 40%.
• If the Securities & Exchange Commission recovers more than a million dollars, the whistleblower might receive a reward of up to 30%.
• Whistleblowing is the single most common method of fraud detection.
• Fraud accounts for approximately 5% of most companies’ lost revenue.
• The percentage of employees who report wrongdoing after they see it is 65%.
• Approximately 22% of employees who reported wrongdoing have said they’ve been retaliated against.
• Approximately a third of employees who report wrongdoing are later dismissed by the company.
• About 20% of corporate fraud committed in large American companies between 1996 and 2004 was detected by employees.
• In 2011, 45% of American workers reported that they had observed workplace wrongdoing.
• Time Magazine called 2002 the “Year of the Whistleblower.”

Observing National Whistleblower Day

National Whistleblower Day isn’t a day that requires any formal celebration, even though some agencies might have some kind of event to commemorate this day. All that people who want to celebrate this day need to do is to learn about some of the whistleblowers who have put the country above themselves. People can also use the hashtag #NationalWhistleblowerDay to spread the word about this important holiday.