Whistleblowers

1. WHO CAN REPORT

A report on a violation of the law may be submitted by a natural person who has information on a violation of the law obtained as part of past, present or future activities related to the performance of work on the basis of an employment relationship or another legal relationship constituting the basis for the provision of work or services or the performance of a function in or for the Company, respectively, in the event that there is a possibility of experiencing retaliatory actions, including:

• employee,
• temporary employee,
• a person performing work under other than an employment relationship, including under a civil law contract,
• a person who obtained information about a violation of law before entering into an employment relationship or another legal relationship constituting the basis for the provision of work or services or performing a function in or for the Company or after their termination,
• entrepreneur,
• proxy,
• shareholder or partner,
• member of the body of a legal person or an organizational unit without legal personality,
• a person performing work under the supervision and direction of a contractor, subcontractor or supplier,
• intern,
• volunteer,

The above-mentioned person who reports or publicly discloses information about a violation of the law is referred to as a whistleblower.

 

2. WHAT CAN BE REPORTED

The subject of the report may be information about a violation of law, i.e., information, including a justified suspicion regarding an actual or potential violation of law, which occurred or is likely to occur in the Company, in which the whistleblower participated in the recruitment process or other negotiations preceding the conclusion of a contract, works or worked, or in another legal entity with which the whistleblower has or had contact in a work-related context, or information regarding an attempt to conceal such a violation of law.

The subject of the report may be an action or omission that is unlawful or intended to circumvent the law, concerning the following areas:

1. corruption,
2. public procurement,
3. financial services, products, and markets,
4. counteracting money laundering and financing of terrorism,
5. product safety and compliance with requirements,
6. transport safety,
7. environmental protection,
8. radiological protection and nuclear safety,
9. food and feed safety,
10. health and welfare of animals,
11. public health,
12. consumer protection,
13. privacy and personal data protection,
14. network and IT systems security,
15. financial interests of the State Treasury of the Republic of Poland, local government units, and the European Union,
16. the European Union internal market, including public law rules on competition and state aid and corporate taxation,
17. constitutional freedoms and rights of individuals in their relations with public authorities, unrelated to the areas indicated in points a) – p) above.

 

3. HOW TO MAKE AN INTERNAL REPORT

The Companies have established separate internal reporting channels for reporting information regarding violations of law to GWW Legal and for reporting information regarding violations of law to GWW Tax, respectively.

Reporting information about a violation of law at GWW Legal

The person responsible for receiving and considering reports of violations of the law and taking follow-up actions at GWW Legal is the Whistleblower Protection Coordinator (KOS) authorized by GWW Legal – i.e. Anna Opieka.

Reports of violations in GWW Legal can be made through the following reporting channels:

1. in electronic form, by email to the email address: legal@gww.pl or
2. in paper form, by external mail to the following address: GWW Grynhoff i Partnerzy Radcowie Prawni i Doradcy Podatkowi sp. p., ul. Książęca 4, 00-498 Warsaw, with the note: “Whistleblower Report – delivered to the authorized person in person, do not open at the secretariat” or
3. in electronic form, by email to the email address of Management Board Member Ryszard Bartkowiak, i.e. bartkowiak@gww.pl – when the information on the violation of the law concerns KOS (in such a case KOS is excluded from the process of verification and consideration of the reporting and taking follow-up actions).

 

Reporting information about a violation of law at GWW Tax

The person responsible for receiving and considering reports of violations of the law and taking follow-up actions at GWW Tax is the Whistleblower Protection Coordinator (KOS) authorized by GWW Tax – i.e. Anna Opieka.

Reports of violations in GWW Tax can be made through the following reporting channels:

1. in electronic form, by email to the email address: tax@gww.pl or
2. in paper form, by external mail to the following address: GWW Ladziński, Cmoch i Wspólnicy spółka komandytowa, ul. Książęca 4, 00-498 Warsaw, with the note: “Whistleblower Report – delivered to the authorized person in person, do not open at the secretariat” or
3. in electronic form, by email to the email address of the partner Piotr Świstak, i.e. swistak@gww.pl – when the information on the violation of the law concerns KOS (in such a case KOS is excluded from the process of verification and consideration of the reporting and taking follow-up actions).

 

4. WHAT SHOULD AN INTERNAL REPORT INCLUDE?

A report of a violation should include an explanation of the subject of the report and at least the following information:

• personal data of the whistleblower, necessary for his/her identification (if the whistleblower does not make an anonymous report – see point 5 below),
• date and place of the violation or the date and place where information about the violation was obtained,
• description of a specific situation or circumstances creating a possibility of a violation of the law,
• indication of the entity or person to whom the report relates, together with indication of the personal data necessary to identify the entity to which the report relates,
• identification of possible witnesses to the violation of the law,
• indication of all evidence and information available to the whistleblower that may be helpful in the process of considering the report,
• indication of the preferred method of feedback contact, including the address or contact details for providing confirmation of receipt of the report and information on any follow-up actions taken.

5. ANONYMOUS REPORTS

Anonymous reports are also considered.

If the whistleblower does not reveal his/her identity and does not provide data when making a report, the Company shall recognize such a report as anonymous and shall apply the same procedure as for other reports providing data.

If, in the course of considering an anonymous report, the identity of the reporting person is established, that person obtains the status of a whistleblower and is in particular subject to the protection against retaliatory actions due to whistleblowers, referred to in point 7.

6. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER AN INTERNAL REPORT IS MADE

After receiving the report, the Company takes follow-up actions with due diligence to assess the truthfulness of the information contained in the report and to counteract the violation of law that is the subject of the report.

If the report contains the whistleblower’s contact details:

• the whistleblower is given a confirmation of receipt of the report – within 7 days from the date of reporting;
• it is possible to ask the whistleblower to supplement the report;
• the whistleblower is provided with feedback on the actions taken within a period not exceeding 3 months from the date of confirmation of receipt of the report or – in the absence of such confirmation – after 7 days from the date of reporting.

7. PROTECTION AGAINST RETALIATION

A whistleblower is protected against retaliatory actions from the moment of making a report or public disclosure, provided that the whistleblower had reasonable grounds to believe that the information that was the subject of the report or public disclosure was true at the time of making the report or public disclosure and that it constitutes information about a violation of the law indicated in point 2 above.

Retaliatory action is prohibited, in particular including:

• termination of a contract to which the whistleblower is a party, in particular concerning the sale or delivery of goods or the provision of services, withdrawal from such a contract or termination without notice,
• imposition of an obligation or refusal to grant, limitation, or revocation of a right, in particular a concession, permit, or exemption,
• refusal to enter into an employment relationship,
• notice or termination without notice of the employment relationship,
• failure to conclude a fixed-term employment contract or an employment contract for an indefinite period after the termination of a trial period employment contract, failure to conclude another fixed-term employment contract or an employment contract for an indefinite period after the termination of a fixed-term employment contract – in a situation where the whistleblower had a justified expectation that such a contract would be concluded with him/her,
• reduction of the amount of remuneration,
• suspension of promotion or omission in the promotion process,
• omission in the granting of work-related benefits other than remuneration or reduction of the amount of such benefits,
• transfer to a lower position,
• suspension from performing employee or official duties,
• transfer of the whistleblower’s current employee duties to another employee,
• an unfavorable change in the place of work or working time schedule,
• negative evaluation of work results or negative opinion about work performed,
• imposition or application of a disciplinary measure, including a financial penalty,
  or a measure of a similar nature,
• coercion, intimidation or exclusion,
• mobbing,
• discrimination,
• unfavorable or unfair treatment,
• suspension of participation or omission from selection for participation in training programs aimed at enhancing professional qualifications
  ,
• unjustified referral for a medical examination, including psychiatric examination, unless separate provisions provide for the possibility of referring an employee for such examination,
• actions aimed at hindering future employment opportunities,
  in a given sector or industry on the basis of an informal or formal sectoral or industry agreement,
• causing financial loss, including economic loss or loss of income,
• causing other non-material damage, including violation of personal rights, in particular the whistleblower’s good name.

Persons who assist whistleblowers in making a report and persons associated with the whistleblower are also protected against retaliatory action.

If retaliatory action is suspected or is taken, this fact should be reported to the Company (via the appropriate reporting channels indicated in point 3 above) in order for the Company to take action to minimize or eliminate actual or potential retaliatory action.

8. WHISTLEBLOWER RESPONSIBILITY

A whistleblower who makes a report in bad faith (i.e. knowing that no violation of the law has occurred or providing false information in this respect) is not protected against retaliatory actions.

Whistleblower protection does not apply to a whistleblower who is also the perpetrator or co-perpetrator of the violation of the law covered by the report, although in such a case the Company may take into account the fact that the whistleblower was informed of the violation of the law as a mitigating circumstance when deciding on employee or civil liability.

9. EXTERNAL REPORTS AND PUBLIC DISCLOSURES

Reports to public authorities (external reports):

• A whistleblower may report a violation directly to the Ombudsman or another public authority, especially if the Company does not respond to the report, there is a risk of serious damage or retaliation, or there is little prospect that the Company will effectively resolve the matter (e.g. due to the possibility of destruction of evidence or collusion).

Protection for external reports:

• Reporting information about a violation of the law directly to a public authority does not deprive the whistleblower of the protection provided for in the Act.

Protection for public disclosures:

• A whistleblower making a public disclosure is protected if he/she first reports the breach internally and externally but does not receive feedback, or immediately makes an external report that is not responded to (unless the whistleblower failed to provide a contact address to which such information should be forwarded). Protection is also available if the violation constitutes a threat to the public interest, there is a risk of retaliatory action, or there is a low chance of effective counteraction.

Disclosure to the press:

• Protection when disclosing information directly to the press is regulated by the provisions of the Press Law.

 

10. DATA PROTECTION AND PRIVACY

GWW Legal as the controller

The controller of personal data processed in connection with the reporting or public disclosure of information about a violation of the law at GWW Legal, in particular in connection with the receipt and verification of reports and maintaining the register of reports, is GWW Legal.

Information regarding the processing by GWW Legal of personal data of whistleblowers, persons concerned by the report, persons assisting in making the report, persons associated with the whistleblower, as well as third parties, in particular witnesses and other persons whose data is included in the report, including information on the purposes of data processing, legal basis for processing, recipients of data, the period of data storage, as well as the rights of data subjects, can be found in the “GDPR” tab, available on the Company’s website at https://gww.pl/ (direct link: https://gww.pl/rodo/naruszenia-prawa-gww-legal/).

 

GWW Tax as the controller

The controller of personal data processed in connection with the reporting or public disclosure of information about a violation of the law at GWW Tax, in particular in connection with the receipt and verification of reports and maintaining the register of reports, is GWW Tax.

Information regarding the processing by GWW Tax of personal data of whistleblowers, persons concerned by the report, persons assisting in making the report, persons associated with the whistleblower, as well as third parties, in particular witnesses and other persons whose data is included in the report, including information on the purposes of data processing, legal basis for processing, recipients of data, the period of data storage, as well as the rights of data subjects, can be found in the “GDPR” tab, available on the Company’s website at https://gww.pl/ (direct link: https://gww.pl/rodo/naruszenia-prawa-gww-tax/  )