Section – General protected disclosure

General protected disclosure

9. (1) Any disclosure made in good faith by an employee—

(a) who reasonably believes that the information disclosed, and any allegation contained in it, are substantially true; and

(b) who does not make the disclosure for purposes of personal gain, excluding any reward payable in terms of any law; is a protected disclosure if—

(i) one or more of the conditions referred to in subsection (2) apply; and

(ii) in all the circumstances of the case, it is reasonable to make the disclosure.

(2) The conditions referred to in subsection (1)(i) are—

(a) that at the time the employee who makes the disclosure has reason to believe that he or she will be subjected to an occupational detriment if he or she makes
a disclosure to his or her employer in accordance with section 6;

(b) that, in a case where no person or body is prescribed for the purposes of section 8 in relation to the relevant improprie~, the employee making the disclosure has reason to believe that it is likely that evidence relating to the impropriety will be concealed or destroyed if he or she makes the disclosure to his or her employee

(c) that the employee making the disclosure has previously made a disclosure of substantially the same information to—

(i) his or her employen or

(ii) a person or body referred to in section 8, in respect of which no action was taken within a reasonable period after the disclosure; or

(d) that the impropriety is of an exceptionally serious nature.

(3) In determining for the purposes of subsection (1 )(ii) whether it is reasonable for the employee to make the disclosure, consideration must be given to-

(a) the identity of the person to whom the disclosure is made;

(b) the seriousness of the impropriety;

(c) whether the impropriety is continuing or is likely to occur in the future;

(d) whether the disclosure is made in breach of a duty of confidentiality of the employer towards any other person;

(e) in a case falling within subsection (2)(c), any action which the employer or the person or body to whom the disclosure was made, has taken, or might
reasonably be expected to have taken, as a result of the previous disclosure;

(f) in a case falling within subsection (2)(c)(i), whether in making the disclosure to the employer the employee complied with any procedure which was
authorised by the employer and

(g) the public interest.

(4) For the purposes of this section a subsequent disclosure may be regarded as a disclosure of substantially the same information referred to in subsection (2)(c) where such subsequent disclosure extends to information concerning an action taken or not taken by any person as a result of the previous disclosure.