General purpose: This procedure is developed in order to implement the provisions of Law 361/2022 on the protection of whistleblowers in the public interest.
The purpose of the procedure is, on the one hand, to protect persons within REINERT who report, in good faith, facts that involve violations of the law, in accordance with the provisions of Law no. 361/2022, and on the other hand, creating and maintaining a work environment in which REINERT employees are able to warn about possible abusive practices or bad administration/violations of the law with the certainty that the warnings will be treated seriously.
Specific purpose: This procedure describes the actions taken and the flow of documents starting with the receipt and registration of a warning in the public interest, until its resolution. This procedure encourages REINERT employees and partners to report information regarding any actual or potential violations of the law, as defined in this procedure.
This procedure applies to all REINERT employees and collaborators, regardless of their employment, to all activities and in all departments.
For the purposes of this procedure, the terms and expressions below have the following meanings:
subsequent actions – any action taken by the recipient of an internal report or by the competent authority in order to resolve the report and, where appropriate, to remedy the reported violation.
a). Law no. 361/2022 on the protection of public interest whistleblowers, with subsequent amendments and additions;
b). The provisions of art. 325 and art. 26 paragraph 2 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Whistleblowers are people who make reports and who have obtained information about violations of the law, in a professional context. The category of these persons includes, at least, the following:
The reports must concern one of the following violations of the law, respectively facts that consist of an action or inaction that constitute non-compliance with the legal provisions provided in annex no. 2 of Law no. 361/2022, which concern areas such as:
The reporting will include, at least, the following:
Persons who report violations of the law, which have occurred, or which are likely to occur within REINERT, have the following methods of internal reporting:
By email to the address avvosvor@reinert-romania.ro
By phone, at number 0740 309 631
In writing, through the postal services at the address REINERT, Mun. Oradea, str. Petre P. Carp, no. 18, Bihor county, with the mention “Attention Responsible Whistleblowers in the public interest”;
In person, by being present at the REINERT headquarters (with prior appointment made at the email address avvosvor@reinert-romania.ro or at the phone number 0740 309 631). Reporting in this case will be done directly to the Designated Person. The designated person will draw up a record of the report subject to the consent of the whistleblower in the public interest. The appointed person offers the whistleblower in the public interest the opportunity to verify, rectify and express his agreement regarding the minutes of the conversation, by signing it. If the whistleblower does not agree to the recording, he will use the other reporting methods or he will be able to report in writing, on paper, to the appointed person.
The communication channels described above can also be used for communications sent anonymously, meaning that art. 6 para. 2 of Law 361/2022: “the report that does not include the name, surname, contact details or signature of the whistleblower in the public interest is examined and resolved to the extent that it contains indications of violations of the law.”
This will be responsible for informing REINERT employees about the regulations and implementing the provisions of Law 361/2022 both towards REINERT employees and collaborators, and towards public authorities with a control role.
The name of the appointed person, as well as the means of reporting, must be made known to each employee, by posting it on the company’s website and by posting it at the headquarters, in the dining room, in a visible and accessible place.
a). The designated person shall ensure that at all times at least one means of reporting is accessible.
b). The designated person will take the necessary steps to protect the confidentiality of the identity of the whistleblower and any third party named in the report, and to prevent access to the report by unauthorized personnel.
c). The designated person will send the whistleblower in the public interest the confirmation of receipt of the report within no more than 7 calendar days from its receipt.
d). The designated person will investigate the report and decide on the necessary follow-up actions to verify and resolve the report.
e). The appointed person will inform the whistleblower in the public interest about the status of the subsequent actions, within no more than 3 months from the date of confirmation of receipt or, in the event that the receipt of the report was not confirmed, from the expiration of the 7-day period from the date of receipt of the report, as well as, subsequently, whenever developments are recorded in the development of subsequent actions, except in the case where the information could endanger their development.
f). The designated person can request the completion of the report, with a deadline of 15 days. In case of non-fulfilment of the completion obligation, the designated person ranks the reporting.
Reporting ranks when:
– does not contain the elements provided for in art. 6 of Law 361/2022, other than the identification data of the public interest whistleblower, and the designated person requested its completion within 15 days, without this obligation being fulfilled;
– the report is submitted anonymously and does not contain sufficient information regarding violations of the law, which would allow the analysis and resolution of the report, and the appointed person requested its completion within 15 days, without this obligation being fulfilled.
If a person makes several reports with the same object, they are connected, the whistleblower in the public interest receiving only one information. If, after sending it, a new report is received with the same object, without presenting additional information to justify a different subsequent action, it is classified.
The Designated Person may decide to close the procedure if, after reviewing the report, it is determined that it is clearly a minor violation and does not require further follow-up action other than closing the procedure.
The classification solution is communicated to the whistleblower in the public interest, with the indication of the legal basis.
g). The designated person has the obligation to inform the management of REINERT and the whistleblower in the public interest regarding the way to resolve the report.
h). The appointed person has any other obligations provided by the regulations in force for the implementation of the provisions regarding the warning in the public interest.
i). Warnings may be given by any means of communication. In the situation where the whistleblower chooses a transparent reporting method, he assumes the eventual debunking.
j). The designated person verifies the possible irregularities/violations of the law reported in the warning and proposes to REINERT management the necessary legal measures. In the situation where the verification of the notified exceeds the duties/competencies of the Designated Person, the verification will be redirected to the competent structures/bodies.
REINERT encourages the reporting of any violations of the law and ensures appropriate protection of the Public Interest Whistleblower against any retaliation or discrimination.
The person appointed to solve the report has the obligation not to reveal the whistleblower’s identity in the public interest, nor the information that would allow his direct or indirect identification, except for the situation in which he has his express consent. By way of exception, the identity of the whistleblower in the public interest and any other information may be disclosed only if this is an obligation imposed by law, in compliance with the conditions and limits provided by it. In this case, the whistleblower in the public interest is informed beforehand, in writing, about the disclosure of the identity and the reasons for the disclosure of the confidential data in question. The obligation does not exist if information would jeopardize investigations or legal proceedings.
All personal data processing carried out pursuant to this procedure, including the exchange or transmission of personal data by the competent authorities, is carried out in accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Law no. 363/2018, as well as the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2018/1.725.
