Once your unethical behavior is reported it may be a long time or worst, you may never be able to resurrect a positive image.
The position I take in terms of whistleblowing is I am in favor of it. I feel it is important to protect society and make sure employers are practicing legal business and ethical behavior. Employers usually have no incentive to correct their unethical behavior if they can get away with it. Also, I would not feel right and comfortable working for a company that either asked me to do unethical things or a company that practiced unethical behavior. In 1998 the Public Interest Disclosure Act was created, it is sometimes called the Whistleblowers" Act. The Act applies to all workers in any industry and protects them when they decide to report or raise concerns about the company regarding crime, illegal activity, and danger of health and safety or the environment.
An important criteria represented by the textbook, "Moral Issues in Business" is there is a set of procedures you should consider in deciding if whistleblowing is morally justified. The steps according to Norman Bowie are, "(1)it is done from the appropriate moral motive-namely, as provided in the definition of whisteblowing, (2) the whistle blower, except in special circumstances, has exhausted all internal channels for dissent before going public, (3) the whistle blower has compelling evidence that the inappropriate actions have been ordered or have occurred, (4) the whistle blower has acted after careful analysis or the danger and (5) the whistle blowing has some chance of success. So after reviewing the above guidelines you have to really look at the issue at hand. I think it is always important to do the right thing and that you will always come out ahead from taking the correct action.
The problems that are of concern to whistle blowers is that usually when you confront upper-management about the situation you have noticed, they offer you an ultimatum or a bribe, like a raise or bonus to keep it quiet.