David Lillis: Are Public Service Whistleblowers Safe from Retribution?

Punishment for Speaking Out

The Hāpai Public Newsletter of 25 August discusses the very real dangers of whistleblowing in New Zealand’s public service (Hāpai Public, 2026). The newsletter quotes research from the Office of the Ombudsman, showing that of public servants who made a protected disclosure, 40% claimed to have been bullied or harassed, 29% claimed that they had lost their job, and about 20% claimed to have been demoted (Office of the Ombudsman, 2026).

The Ombudsman survey showed that confidentiality continues to provide a barrier to reporting wrongdoing. The survey found that 24% of respondents claimed to have witnessed serious wrongdoing at work but, of that group, only 37% made a protected disclosure.

Apparently, the Office of the Ombudsman sees a serious problem here because protected disclosures can drive positive change. John Allen, CEO of the Office of the Ombudsman, says:

“. . . in my view, whistleblowers are the great civic heroes of our society. They’re the people who, at great personal cost, are the ones who step forward when others don’t.”

The Hāpai Public Newsletter of 25 August asks whether whistleblowers have enough protection in New Zealand. The correct answer here is a very definite NO. Right now I am attempting to provide support to several people who have been bashed out of employment – and some, most probably, for the crime of whistleblowing. Curiously, all are women, and the hurt that they are experiencing right now is all too obvious. For the record, I too have witnessed serious wrongdoing, but have got nowhere in my attempts to put a stop to the wrongdoing.

Ignoring the Agreed Standards and Expectations

Recently, the Code of Conduct for the Public Sector came into force (Public Service Commission, 2026a). This document guarantees that public servants who have concerns will be treated with respect and have their concerns taken seriously. Another relevant document is the Public Service Commission's Model standards: Speaking Up (Public Service Commission, 2025).

Several of us have invoked those two documents in attempting to discuss employment matters with a particular Ministry that has to do with education, but the executive to whom we directed our submission absolutely refuses to communicate with us and clearly has instructed her team to demand that we never communicate with her. Similarly, our recent efforts to expose and put an end to negative behaviours at other public entities are being ignored.

Amongst other research, the 2025 Public Service Census reported workplace bullying across the public service at 12.1% of workers (Public Service Commission, 2026b). Unfortunately, the Public Service Commission will not get involved and believes that such matters are up to the employer to address. Thus, nothing changes unless Government forces the necessary change.

Dr David Lillis trained in physics and mathematics at Victoria University and Curtin University in Perth, working as a teacher, researcher, statistician and lecturer for most of his career. He has published many articles and scientific papers, as well as a book on graphing and statistics.

References

Hāpai Public (2026). Are whistleblowers safe from retribution?

https://hapaipublic.org.nz/OutboundMessage?Action=View%20HTML&OutboundMessage_id=141811&OutboundRecipient_id=4477968

Office of the Ombudsman (2026). Ombudsman’s survey blows whistle on disclosure retaliation

https://insidegovernment.co.nz/ombudsmans-survey-blows-whistle-on-disclosure-retaliation/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

Public Service Commission (2025). Model Standards: Speaking Up

https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/guidance/model-standards-speaking-up

Public Service Commission (2026a). The Code of Conduct for the Public Sector

https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/guidance/the-code-of-conduct-for-the-public-sector

Public Service Commission (2026b). Unacceptable behaviour

https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/data/public-service-census/integrity/unacceptable-behaviour