In July this year, the latest, third draft of the Act on Whistleblower Protection was published, which brings all entrepreneurs closer to the need to implement an internal channel for managing Whistleblowers reports. One of the employers’ obligations under the Whistleblower Directive is to develop and make available a reporting procedure and take corrective action. What should the Whistleblowing process look like?
Procedure for signaling violations by means of an internal channel.
Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of Whistleblowers contains information on how to submit reports. Pursuant to the regulations, Whistleblowers should primarily use the possibility of signaling violations using an internal channel specially created for this purpose. The procedures referred to in Art. 9 Whistleblower Directives consist of the following steps:
- Designing, establishing, and operating channels for receiving reports while maintaining appropriate security standards and ensuring that the confidentiality of the identity is protected to all persons who signaled the problem.
- Acknowledge the Whistleblower accepting the notification within seven days of its receipt.
- Indication of an impartial person or the entire department to receive and check the correctness of reports. Designated employees are also responsible for communicating with the Whistleblower in order to provide information on the progress of the case.
- Take follow-up actions to resolve the issue, including interviews with the Whistleblower, the person concerned and potential witnesses.
- Providing feedback within a time limit set by national law, which may not exceed three months from acknowledgment of receipt of the report.
- Creating understandable and easily accessible regulations for all employees regarding the methods of reporting irregularities in the company and the stages of further proceedings.
What questions should the Whistleblower be asked to resolve the report as effectively as possible?
It is the responsibility of the persons receiving and processing reports to verify the accuracy of the information received and to take appropriate follow-up steps to resolve the report. Following ISO 37002 "Whistleblowing management systems - Guidelines", they can ask the Whistleblower the following questions for the best understanding of the case:
- Where did the violation take place?
- What people are involved in the report?
- When did the irregularity occur?
- How do you think the breach affects the organization?
- Do you feel threatened by other people regarding your report?
- Do you have evidence or information regarding the irregularity?
- Do you know any other violation witnesses?
It is important that the entire process of managing a report is secure and that the confidentiality of the identity of Whistleblowers is protected. Whistleblower is the software that not only complies with the provisions of the Directive of the European Parliament and the Council (EU) but also protects Whistleblowers reporting violations.
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