Examining Online Comments of Employee Through The Concept of External Whistleblowing: A Study on Restaurants

Abstract

The concept of whistleblowing is very important in revealing all illegal behaviors and negative actions in businesses. Those who disclose these events are called whistleblowers. Whistleblowing has become an increasingly important concept in recent years. The aim of this study is to determine the negative behaviors experienced in restaurant businesses, and to determine the attitudes and behaviors of employees and managers against these negative actions. In this context, this study used employee platform websites to examine employee feedback. The US-based company has had a platform where users can write reviews of companies and job opportunities since 2008. Employees can express their views and feedback about the organization on this platform. 1.250 restaurant reviews in English with searchable comments have been uploaded to the platform. These restaurants have been evaluated for unethical acts such as low pay and overtime, illegal negligence and policies, psychological violence, harassment and discrimination, workplace safety, mismanagement and theft. According to the results obtained, those working in restaurants are exposed to these whistleblowing categories. Employees mostly complain about poor management and lack of support from managers and therefore use external disclosure channels.