Investigation Reports

Relevant FAQs

What is the Public Interest Disclosure of Wrongdoing Act?

The Public Interest Disclosure of Wrongdoing Act (PIDWA) went into effect on June 15, 2015. Its purpose is to promote public confidence by enabling employees of public entities to disclose wrongdoings that occur in public entities and protecting these employees from reprisal. The PIDWA also establishes the office of the Public Interest Disclosure Commissioner.

Who is the Public Interest Disclosure Commissioner?

The Public Interest Disclosure Commissioner (PIDC) is an independent officer of the Legislative Assembly who is authorized to investigate disclosures of wrongdoing and complaints about reprisals. The PIDC also has authority to review and comment on procedures established by public entities to manage disclosures of wrongdoing and provide advice to employees about making a wrongdoing disclosure and about the PIDWA generally.

In Yukon, the PIDC is also the Ombudsman and the Information and Privacy Commissioner. The staff in the PIDC’s office work to fulfill the mandates of the Public Interest Disclosure of Wrongdoing Act (PIDWA), the Ombudsman Act, the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (ATIPP Act) and once proclaimed the Health Information Privacy and Management Act.

What is a wrongdoing?

A “wrongdoing” is defined in the PIDWA as:

• (a) a contravention of an Act, a regulation made under an Act, an Act of Parliament, or a regulation made under an Act of Parliament;
• (b) an act or omission that creates a substantial and specific danger
  • (i) to the life, health or safety of individuals, other than a danger that is inherent in the performance of the duties or functions of an employee, or
  • (ii) to the environment;
• (c) gross mismanagement of public funds or a public asset;
• (d) knowingly directing or counselling an individual to commit a wrongdoing described in any of paragraphs (a) to (c).