More workers in British Columbia’s public sector are now protected under expanded whistleblower protections at various agencies, boards and commissions.

The government is phasing in more organizations under the Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA). PIDA allows employees to confidentially share information about a serious wrongdoing that affects the public interest with designated officers within their organizations or to the Office of the Ombudsperson.

It also provides protection to employees who participate in PIDA investigations from reprisals, such as demotion, termination or other measures that adversely affect the employee’s work conditions. It also ensures employees under investigation are treated fairly.

Just a few of the organizations brought under PIDA on April 1, 2022, include the: Building Code Appeal Board; Property Assessment Appeal Board; Employment Standards Tribunal; Human Rights Tribunal; Environmental Appeal Board; Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal; Hospital Appeal Board; British Columbia Utilities Commission; BC Games Society; Community Care and Assisted Living Appeal Board and the Safety Standards Appeal Board.

B.C. passed PIDA in 2018 in response to the Ombudsperson’s 2017 report, Misfire: The 2012 Ministry of Health Employment Terminations and Related Matters.

The act, which came into force on Dec. 1, 2019, currently applies to staff in government ministries and independent offices of the legislature. Bringing other public-sector organizations under PIDA will more closely align B.C. with other jurisdictions in Canada.

More agencies, boards and commissions will be brought under PIDA in December 2022, alongside Crown corporations. Recognizing the impacts of the pandemic on certain sectors, other organizations will follow in 2023 and 2024, including health authorities and the education sector.