New employee entitlement – TVN24 Biznes

As explained by the Ministry of Labor, a whistleblower is a person reporting a violation of the law that he or she learned about in connection with work. Typically, the whistleblower is an employee, but this is not a requirement.

From September 25, people who report irregularities in a work-related context have been protected against retaliation, e.g. dismissal.

In addition to reporting internally to the employer, the reporting party may use two other whistleblowing options. The first is an external report to the Ombudsman or a public authority. Pursuant to the Act, this option enters into force on December 25. The second is public disclosure, e.g. through the media or social networking sites.

– However, many employers believe that the provisions on whistleblower protection will come into force on January 1, 2025, but in my opinion this approach is incorrect. The Act clearly indicates two dates for the entry into force of individual provisions – September 25 and December 25, 2024 – says legal advisor Dr. Monika Wieczorek.

She pointed out that the date of January 1 appeared around the interpretation adopted by the Ministry of Labor.

– The Act specifies that the provisions regarding internal reporting apply to entities employing at least 50 people as of January 1 or July 1. Therefore – according to the ministry – the obligation to have the procedure will start only in the new year, because only then will it be possible to determine this number – said Wieczorek.

According to the expert, most organizations are aware of their employment status.

– Alternatively, one could wonder what to do with those who are among those 50 employed. However, certain statutory doubts cannot be supplemented with a ministerial interpretation, said Wieczorek.

She emphasized that regardless of doubts regarding the implementation of procedures, whistleblower protection has been available since September 25.

In turn, until December 25, public authorities, including: Ombudsmanare obliged to establish an external reporting channel for whistleblowers and provide information on the adopted mechanisms in the Public Information Bulletin.

– A whistleblower may turn to the Ombudsman, which is the headquarters that directs reports to the competent authorities. In the first step, the Ombudsman performs a preliminary verification, i.e. assesses whether the report concerns information about a violation of the law within the meaning of the Whistleblower Protection Act, and then examines which authority is competent to hear the case, Wieczorek said.

The whistleblower may also immediately send the report to the appropriate authority, e.g. the Personal Data Protection Office, the Office of Electronic Communications, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, or to local government bodies – the commune head, the mayor and the president of the city.

– The problem with the Polish model is that there are many public bodies that are obliged to accept external reports and they are not mentioned by name. In practice, there may be problems with determining whether a given authority is obliged to have a channel for external reports and whether it is competent in terms of the matter covered by the report, Wieczorek noted. This aspect of the act – as she assessed – would require clarification.

The expert emphasized that, apart from the technical implementation of the regulations, an open approach to their application is also important.

– We will not change the culture of the organization or the perception of whistleblowers with a single legal act. The state should build trust in the new law, educate and strive to change attitudes towards reporting violations of the law, added Wieczorek.

A whistleblower may be any person exposed to retaliation after reporting, regardless of the basis and form of work. The same assistance will also be available to a person helping the whistleblower and a person associated with him. Retaliatory actions may include, for example, deprivation of a promotion, raise, award or, in extreme cases, dismissal from work.

Within seven days of reporting, the whistleblower should receive confirmation that his or her report has been accepted. The next step is for the employer to take follow-up actions, which most often involve initiating explanatory proceedings.

The catalog of areas in which reporting can be made includes, among others: corruption, counteracting money laundering and terrorism financing; product safety and compliance with requirements; transport safety; environmental protection; animal health and welfare; public health; consumer protection; protection of privacy and personal data; security of networks and ICT systems, as well as constitutional freedoms and human rights and citizen