Originally published May 2010
The recent EAT decision in the case of BP plc v Elstone confirms that a claimant has to be a 'worker' to bring a claim against their current employer that they have suffered a detriment for whistleblowing (otherwise known as making a 'protected disclosure').
However, the 'protected disclosure' need not have been made to their current employer, provided that it was made to someone who was their employer at the time it was made.
In this case, the claimant had made a complaint about BP safety practices while working for an outside contractor. Later, he took up a post at BP. When BP found out about his previous complaint, they were no longer willing to employ him. He was able to claim for 'whistleblower' protection; this resulted in his dismissal from BP being deemed to be automatically unfair.
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