MKs adopt law protecting workers who report corruption

By REBECCA ANNA STOIL
In the wake of a series of scandals involving corruption in both the public and private sectors, a new law defending whistle-blowers went into effect following a Tuesday Knesset vote. The Knesset plenum approved the law in second and third readings in the afternoon. The law imposes a three-year prison sentence on any employer found to have fired a whistle-blower, and grants the whistle-blower compensation of up to half a million shekels. The legislation, which was sponsored by MKs Arye Eldad (NU/NRP) and Shelly Yacimovich (Labor), passed the Knesset plenum unanimously. It took two years to work out the wording and content of the law, on which the MKs worked with a number of government ministries as well as with the Movement for Quality Government. The Whistle-Blowers Protection Law applies to employees in both the public and private sectors. According to the law, a worker dismissed after revealing corruption or criminal activity could be awarded up to NIS 50,000 without even proving personal damages resulting from the dismissal. The law also mandates that the court can order the worker to be reassigned to an appropriate alternative position if he or she cannot resume the previous one.