Under Law no. 361/2022 on whistleblowing in the public interest, the so-called Whistleblower’s Law, employees, suppliers, and customers of a company may report misconduct or actions that violate the law and/or the code of conduct while remaining protected from any negative consequences therefrom.
Key aspects:
- applies to all private legal entities with 50 or more employees as well as to authorities, public institutions, and other public legal entities, regardless of the number of employees.
- the obligation to identify or implement internal reporting channels, set up internal reporting procedures and carry out follow-up actions imposed by public authorities and institutions also applies to their entities without legal personality with at least 50 employees.
- by way of example, the protection afforded by the law applies to reports of non-compliance in areas such as public procurement, services, products and financial markets, as well as the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, product safety and compliance, transport safety, environmental protection, radiation protection and nuclear safety, food and feed safety, animal health and welfare, public health, consumer protection, privacy and personal data protection and the security of networks and information systems.
- companies are required to implement a system of protection not only for employees who report irregularities, but also for people whose employment relationship has not started, are in the process of recruitment or other pre-contractual negotiations, or where the employment or service relationship has ended.
- people are protected against dismissal or other forms of retaliation.
- each company must assign persons responsible for receiving and monitoring whistleblowing cases.
The reporting channel must meet the following conditions:
- it must be easily accessible and permanently at least a means of reporting.
- it must protect the identity of the reporter and be confidential during the course of the investigation unless the reporter expressly consents to make it public.
- it must allow for written reporting, on paper or electronically, by communication on the telephone or other voice messaging systems, or by face-to-face meeting at the request of the whistleblower in the public interest.
- all personal data relating to whistleblowers and reported persons must be handled in accordance with the GDPR.
Please note that, according to Article 36 of the law, all private legal entities with more than 50 employees are obliged to comply with the provisions of this law, under penalty of a fine, as of 17 December 2023.
TPA Romania offers through its affiliated law practice consultancy, assistance and support services for companies seeking to ensure compliance with the new legal obligations in the field of whistleblowing in the public interest, including through entirely outsourced solutions.
Source: Law no. 361/2022 on whistleblowing in the public interest
