WHISTLEBLOWERS

1. WHO CAN REPORT

Reports of violations of the law may be made by a natural person who has information about a violation of the law obtained in the course of past, present or future activities related to the performance of work under an employment relationship or other legal relationship constituting the basis for the provision of work or services or the performance of functions in the Company or for the Company, respectively, where there is a possibility of experiencing retaliatory actions, including:

• employee,
• temporary employee,
• person providing work on a basis other than an employment relationship, including on the basis of a civil law contract,
• person who obtained Information about a breach of law before entering into an employment relationship or other legal relationship constituting the basis for the provision of work or services or performing functions in the Company or for the Company or after their termination,
• entrepreneur,
• authorized signatory,
• shareholder,
• member of a body of a legal entity or organizational unit without legal personality,
• person working under the supervision and management of a contractor, subcontractor or supplier,
• trainee,
• volunteer,

The aforementioned 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 breach of law, i.e. information, including a reasonable suspicion, regarding an actual or potential breach of law that has 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 maintains or has maintained contact in a work-related context, or information concerning an attempt to conceal such a violation of the law.

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

1. corruption,
2. public procurement,
3. services, products and financial markets,
4. anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing,
5. product safety and compliance,
6. transport safety,
7. environmental protection,
8. radiation protection and nuclear safety,
9. food and feed safety,
10. animal health and welfare,
11. public health,
12. consumer protection,
13. protection of privacy and personal data,
14. security of networks and ICT systems,
15. financial interests of the State Treasury of the Republic of Poland, local government units and the European Union,
16. the internal market of the European Union, including public-law principles of competition and state aid as well as corporate taxation,
17. constitutional freedoms and human and civil rights – occurring in the relations of an individual with public authorities and not related 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 in GWW Legal and for reporting information regarding violations of law in GWW Tax.

Reporting information about violations of law in GWW Legal

The person responsible for receiving and processing reports of violations of the law and following up on them at GWW Legal is the Whistleblower Protection Coordinator authorized by GWW Legal (KOS) – i.e. Anna Opieka.

A report of a violation at GWW Legal can be made through the following reporting channels:

1. in electronic form, by e-mail to the following e-mail 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 – for the personal attention of the authorized person, do not open at the secretariat” or
3. in electronic form, by e-mail to the e-mail address of Management Board Member Ryszard Bartkowiak, i.e. bartkowiak@gww.pl – if the information about the breach of law concerns the National Council of Arbitration (in which case the National Council of Arbitration is excluded from the process of verification and consideration of the report and taking follow-up actions).

Reporting information about a breach of law at GWW Tax

The person responsible for receiving and processing reports of violations of the law and following up on them at GWW Tax is the Whistleblower Protection Coordinator authorized by GWW Tax (KOS) – i.e. Anna Opieka.

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

1. in electronic form, by e-mail to the following 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 – to be handed over personally to an authorized person, do not open at the secretariat” or
3. in electronic form, by e-mail to the e-mail address of the partner Piotr Świstak, i.e. swistak@gww.pl – when the information about the violation of law concerns the National Council of Ethics (KOS) (in this case, KOS is excluded from the process of verification and consideration of the report and taking follow-up actions).

4. WHAT SHOULD AN INTERNAL REPORT CONTAIN

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

• the whistleblower’s personal data necessary for identification (if the whistleblower does not make an anonymous report – see point 5 below),
• the date and place of the breach of law or the date and place of obtaining information about the breach of law,
• a description of the specific situation or circumstances that may give rise to a violation of the law,
• identification of the entity or person to whom the report relates, together with the personal data necessary to identify the entity to whom the report relates,
• identification of any 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 investigating the report,
• indication of the preferred method of feedback, including an address or contact details, in order to provide confirmation of receipt of the report and information on follow-up actions taken.

5. ANONYMOUS REPORTS

Anonymous reports are also considered.

If the whistleblower does not disclose their identity and does not provide data when making the report, the Company will recognize such a report as anonymous, applying the procedure as for other reports with data provided.

If the identity of the whistleblower is established during the processing of an anonymous report, the person concerned shall be granted whistleblower status and shall, in particular, be entitled to the whistleblower protection against retaliation referred to in Section 7.

6. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER AN INTERNAL REPORT HAS BEEN MADE

After receiving the report, the Company will, with due diligence, take follow-up action to assess the veracity 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 contact details of the whistleblower:

• the whistleblower will receive confirmation of receipt of the report within 7 days from the date of submission;
• the whistleblower may be asked to supplement the report;
• Feedback on the actions taken is provided to the whistleblower within three months from the date of confirmation of receipt of the report or, if no such confirmation is provided, from the end of the seven-day period following the date of submission of the report.

7. PROTECTION AGAINST RETALIATION

The whistleblower is protected against retaliation from the moment of reporting or public disclosure, provided that he had reasonable grounds to believe that the information being reported or publicly disclosed is true at the time of reporting or public disclosure and that it constitutes information about a violation of the law indicated in point 2 above.

It is prohibited to take retaliatory actions consisting in particular of:

• termination of a contract to which the whistleblower is a party, in particular concerning the sale or supply of goods or the provision of services, withdrawal from such a contract or termination of it without notice,
• the imposition of an obligation or the refusal to grant, restriction or withdrawal of an authorization, in particular a concession, permit or tax relief,
• the refusal to establish an employment relationship,
• the termination or dissolution without notice of an employment relationship,
• failure to conclude a fixed-term employment contract or an employment contract for an indefinite period of time after termination of a probationary employment contract, failure to conclude a subsequent fixed-term employment contract or an employment contract for an indefinite period of time after termination of a fixed-term employment contract, if the whistleblower had a legitimate expectation that such a contract would be concluded with him/her,
• reduction in salary,
• suspension of promotion or omission in promotion,
• omission in the granting of benefits related to work other than salary
• or reduction in the amount of these benefits,
• transfer to a lower job position,
• suspension from work or duties,
• transfer of the whistleblower’s current duties to another employee,
• adverse change in the place of work or working hours,
• negative evaluation of work performance or negative work opinion,
• imposition or application of disciplinary action, including financial penalties,
• or a similar measure,
• coercion, intimidation or exclusion,
• mobbing,
• discrimination,
• unfavorable or unfair treatment,
• suspension of participation or omission from selection for participation
• in training courses to improve professional qualifications,
• unjustified referral for a medical examination, including psychiatric examinations, unless separate regulations provide for the possibility of referring an employee for such examinations,
• an action aimed at making it difficult to find a job in the future
• in a given sector or industry on the basis of an informal or formal sector 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 reputation of the whistleblower.

Persons assisting whistleblowers in making a report and persons associated with the whistleblower are also protected against retaliation.

In the event of suspected or actual retaliation, report it to the Company (via the appropriate reporting channels indicated in point 3 above) so that the Company can take steps to minimize or eliminate the existing or potential retaliation.

8. REPORTING PERSON RESPONSIBILITY

A whistleblower who makes a report in bad faith (i.e. knowing that there has been no violation of the law or providing false information in this regard) is not protected against retaliation.

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

9. EXTERNAL REPORTING AND PUBLIC DISCLOSURE

Reporting to public authorities (external reporting):

• A whistleblower can 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 chance of the Company resolving the matter effectively (e.g. due to the possibility of destroying evidence or collusion).

Protection for external reports:

• Reporting a violation directly to a public authority does not deprive the whistleblower of the protection provided by law.

Protection for public disclosures:

• A whistleblower who makes a public disclosure is protected if they first report the violation internally and externally but receive no feedback, or if they make an external report immediately, which is not met with a response (unless the whistleblower has not provided a contact address to which such information should be forwarded). Protection is also granted if the violation poses a threat to the public interest, there is a risk of retaliation, or there is little chance of effective counteraction.

Disclosure to the press:

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

10. DATA PROTECTION AND PRIVACY

GWW Legal as administrator

The controller of personal data processed in connection with the reporting or public disclosure of information about a breach of law at GWW Legal, in particular in connection with the receipt and verification of reports and the keeping of a 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 the report, persons related to the whistleblower, as well as third parties, in particular witnesses and other persons whose data is contained in the report, including information regarding the purposes of data processing, legal grounds for processing, data recipients, the data retention period, 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 administrator

The controller of personal data processed in connection with the reporting or public disclosure of information about a breach of law at GWW Tax, in particular in connection with the receipt and verification of reports and the keeping of a 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 the report, persons related to the whistleblower, as well as third parties, in particular witnesses and other persons whose data is contained in the report, including information regarding the purposes of data processing, legal grounds for processing, recipients of the data, data retention period, 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/ ).