Although whistleblowing is presented as an ethical action, the fate of the employee who has blown the whistle is often marked by reprisals, such as job loss. The literature has so far shown little interest in the whistleblower’s subsequent career. This article investigates how retaliatory job loss impacts his or her career path and the process for re-integrating into the labour market. Based on 11 career narratives focused on the professional experience of French whistleblowers, this article shows that they faced a bifurcation that can be schematized in six stages (event, moratorium, reassessment, job search, insertion, stabilization) as their emotions and actions change over time. As with any job loss, individuals face psychological difficulties associated with the grievance, but this article also highlights specificities, particularly in terms of isolation, reputation and trust in the business world. Their presence threatening the dominant norms, whistleblowers face contradictions and need the support of the social and institutional environment for their professional reintegration.

尽管举报被视为一种道德行为，但举报的员工的命运往往以报复为标志，例如失业。迄今为止，文献对举报人的后续职业兴趣不大。本文调查报复性失业如何影响他或她的职业道路以及重新融入劳动力市场的过程。本文基于关注法国举报人职业经历的 11 个职业叙事，表明他们面临着一个分叉，可以分为六个阶段（事件、暂停、重新评估、求职、插入、稳定），因为他们的情绪和行为发生变化时间。与任何失业一样，个人面临与申诉相关的心理困难，但本文也强调了特殊性，特别是在商业世界中的孤立、声誉和信任方面。他们的存在威胁着主流规范，举报人面临矛盾，需要社会和制度环境的支持才能重新融入职业。