Conor Gogarty

The first spark for investigations editor Conor Gogarty going undercover as a door-to-door sales rep came when he was browsing social media, where people had posted about bad experiences working for a sales company in Cardiff. After arranging interviews with those people, Conor wrote a story that uncovered gruelling work conditions. But the story submitted for this award is a follow-up which saw Conor go undercover at the same Cardiff office. Wearing a hidden camera, he exposed misleading job adverts, lies told on doorsteps to sign elderly people up to charity payments, and cult-like treatment of young reps. After three days working at the business, including a 12-hour shift, Conor's earnings were just £35. He then contacted an employment lawyer, who explained how Conor's evidence undermined the self-employment loophole that the firm had used to justify not paying minimum wage.

After confronting the operation's managing director on camera, Conor's reporting had a significant real-world impact. It led to the office closing down and the charity client reviewing all donations. It also revealed exploitation at linked sales offices, and sparked a regulatory investigation which is set to conclude in the coming months. The article, which made headlines across national titles, has been read 71,440 times on the WalesOnline website, while the accompanying 18-minute documentary (directed by Conor) was watched 1.6 million times on TikTok and 7,000 times on Youtube.

Conor investigated one of Cardiff's best-known restaurants, the recently closed Park House. He used social media to find former employees, and through earning their trust he was put in touch with others. After carrying out in-depth interviews, trawling court records and analysing company accounts, he was able to shine a light on a range of serious allegations against Park House including a toxic working culture, tax discrepancies and unpaid debts, as well as unearthing nine tribunals in which the restaurant owner was found to have owed wages. The piece was read 79,572 times. Conor has continued to hold the restaurateur to account with follow-ups, including on-camera door-stepping and scrutiny of his latest venture, prompting a local authority investigation.

Conor cultivated a relationship with South Wales fire service whistleblowers who gave damning accounts of an exodus of vital part-time staff — but he was lacking a case study to humanise the story and connect with readers. The turning point came when Conor managed to source from a whistleblower the address of a recent fire in Treharris. The fire had happened when the nearest seven on-call stations had no crews available, resulting in a delayed response and the destruction of a woman's beloved home. After knocking doors and putting notes through neighbours' letterboxes, Conor secured an interview with the woman and her traumatic experience became the gateway to examine the crisis. His investigation (read 28,682 times) was discussed in the Welsh Parliament, sparking calls to address the retention crisis, and in a follow-up his FOI request revealed a wealth of data supporting the whistleblowers' concerns.