The Rise of Whistleblowing and Retaliation Across Latin America
It is fair to say that whistleblowing across Latin America has caught on. In fact, according to NAVEX’s 2025 Regional Whistleblowing & Incident Management Benchmark Report, a median of 2.97 out of each 100 employees submitted whistleblower reports last year. While that may not seem high, it is the highest region by far in NAVEX’s study when compared to the global median of 1.57 or the lowest of the four regions studied, Europe at .67. Does a higher volume of reports suggest a willingness to come forward without fear of retaliation or is it something else? The NAVEX report breaks down whistleblower allegations into risk categories. Workplace Conduct, Accounting and Financial Reporting, Business Integrity, Environment, Health and Safety, Misuse or Misappropriation of Assets and Other. In Latin America, 2/3 of all reports fell into the category of Workplace Conduct. Underneath these 6 categories, there are a total of 24 risk types including Harassment, Discrimination, Substance Abuse, Compensation and Benefits, Workplace Civility (or incivility, I suppose), Other Human Resources and Retaliation.
Given that 2/3 of what’s been reported on falls within these categories, that seems like a good place to start our exploration of whistleblowing in Latin America. When you go exploring, it’s good to bring along a guide. In the latest episode of the #FraudEatsStrategy podcast, Lindsay Arrieta of Steptoe’s Investigations and White-Collar practice shares her considerable expertise on whistleblowing, internal investigations and driving regulatory compliance in Latin America.
To hear the entire conversation with Lindsay Arrieta and Scott Moritz, click here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2tOHv1oVbtff9Lx7S091ac?si=4cb2191596164c1e
