# Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 The **Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989** (Pub. L. 101-12) rebuilt the whistleblower provisions of the [[Civil Service Reform Act of 1978]]. It separated the [[Office of Special Counsel]] from the [[Merit Systems Protection Board]] into a free-standing agency, strengthened the prohibition on retaliation for protected disclosures at 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8), and created the **[[Individual Right of Action]]** — the appeal a federal employee may take to the MSPB on their own, without OSC acting for them. It was amended substantially by the [[Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012]]. This is a stub — expand with the 1989 legislative history, the "contributing factor" and "clear and convincing evidence" burdens, and the Federal Circuit case law that prompted the 2012 amendments. ## See also - [[Federal Whistleblower Protection Crosswalk]] - [[Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012]] - [[Prohibited Personnel Practice]] - [[Office of Special Counsel]]