Protecting alleged "whistleblowers" has become a
greater and greater priority of government agencies in recent
years. When agencies believe employers are taking actions that
stifle the "whistleblowing" of employees, they are quick
to take strong action. For the first time, an agency that gets
plenty of attention from companies has joined in this effort.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today issued an order in an administrative
proceeding that found KBR, Inc. had violated SEC Rule 21F-17, which
states: "No person may take any action to impede an individual
from communicating directly with [the SEC] staff about a possible
securities law violation, including enforcing, or threatening to
enforce, a confidentiality agreement ... with respect to such
communications."—Rule 21F-17(a))
