Employees of public entities can make disclosures of wrongdoing.

We encourage employees to make a disclosure of wrongdoing to their Deputy Minister or Chief Executive Officer wherever possible. It is best practice to create an environment where disclosures are encouraged to allow the wrongdoing to be corrected at the earliest possible opportunity.

If you have tried to make a disclosure and are not satisfied with the response, you can contact the Commissioner. You can also make a disclosure directly to the Commissioner if you prefer.

A wrongdoing is defined in the Act as the following conduct in relation to a public entity:

• the contravention of an enactment or an Act of the Parliament of Canada or any regulations made pursuant to it,
• the gross mismanagement of public funds or government assets,
• an act or omission that creates a substantial and specific danger to the life, health or safety of persons or the environment,
• directing or encouraging others to do any of the above.

Public sector employees are protected from reprisal under the Act when they:

• seek information and advice from the Commissioner;
• report a wrongdoing to the designated officer within their organization or to the Commissioner;
• participate in an investigation by their designated officer or the Commissioner; and
• refuse to participate in wrongdoing.

Please send us an email or a letter with the following information and email it to us at contactus@ombudspei.ca

Your disclosure should include:

• your contact information and signature
• the name of the person or persons alleged to have committed or be about to commit a wrongdoing
• a description of the alleged wrongdoing, including the date on which it is alleged to have occurred or is expected to occur
• whether you have made a previous disclosure about the same matter and, if so, a copy of the disclosure and any documents related to it

You are required to take reasonable precautions to ensure that no more personal or confidential information is disclosed than is necessary.

The following identities will be kept confidential (unless absolutely necessary to disclose):

• the employee
• the person alleged to have committed or about to commit a wrongdoing
• witnesses and other persons involved in the investigation

• if more than one year has passed since the employee who made the disclosure discovered the information respecting the alleged wrongdoing
• if in the opinion of the Commissioner the disclosure,
  • does not contain adequate particulars about the alleged wrongdoing to enable the conduct of a fair and effective investigation
  • relates to a matter that could be dealt with more appropriately according to the procedures under a collective agreement or employment contract, or another Act, regulation or policy
  • is frivolous or vexatious, has not been made in good faith, concerns a trivial matter or is not about wrongdoing
  • relates to conduct resulting from a balanced and informed decision-making process on a public policy or operational issue
  • the circumstances of the matter do not warrant investigation.

If we decide not to investigate, we will tell you and the public entity why.

We will contact you to let you know we received your disclosure. We will want to speak with you to obtain details about the wrongdoing.  

We will evaluate the complaint and decide whether we will proceed with an investigation. If we decide not to proceed, we will explain why.

The Commissioner will

• produce a written report setting out the findings and reasons for those findings, and any recommendations that the Commissioner considers appropriate respecting the disclosure and any wrongdoing committed or about to be committed
• provide a copy of the report to the deputy head of the public entity, and
• notify the employee who made the disclosure that a report has been prepared and provided to the deputy head and provide the employee with any information respecting the report that the Commissioner considers appropriate in the circumstances. 

Where the Commissioner made recommendations, the deputy head shall advise the Commissioner what steps have been taken or will be taken to implement the recommendations.  

If the deputy head does not cooperate in an investigation or has failed to follow up as required, the Commissioner will report these failures to the head of the public entity or the Clerk of Executive Council.  

The Commissioner may publish a summary of the investigation provided:

• • it does not identify any person involved in the disclosure or investigation of the disclosure,
  • there are no significant privacy interests of any person involved that would be negatively affected by publication of the summary, and
  • there is a public interest served by the publication of the summary.