Austria has been delayed in implementing the Whistleblowers Directive, which was decided long ago at EU level. In fact, the transposition into national law should have taken place at the end of last year. On Friday, the associated whistleblower law – with a six-week delay – was sent for review for six weeks, the turquoise-green federal government announced. Companies with 50 or more employees will have to set up internal hotlines in the future.
The Chamber of Labor (AK) recently feared that whistleblowers in this country would not be sufficiently protected if only EU law were applied and the implementation was not extended to Austrian law. According to the responsible Ministry of Labor, the now available draft implements the European Union Whistleblowers Directive, which provides for the protection of whistleblowers who report violations of Union law.
Whistleblowing is about exposing and communicating grievances or criminal activity by insiders, who as employees typically have privileged access to information. Following various scandals such as the Facebook data breach or the so-called Panama Papers, which only became public through whistleblowers, the European Commission presented a proposal in April 2018 for uniform protection for whistleblowers.
According to the Ministry of Labor, the draft law includes the establishment of internal and external agencies to anonymously report violations of rights in areas of special public interest. The draft law also includes the protection of whistleblowers enshrined in the EU.
“As the Ministry of Labor, we have campaigned to include all the specifications of the European Commission in the draft law,” said ÖVP, Labor Minister Martin Kocher. “But the concept is also based on the requirement to minimize the additional financial and personnel burdens resulting from the establishment of hotlines necessary for reporting information to all institutions and companies involved.” Employees were given more legal certainty. Because they need to be able to be protected from retaliation in their institutions or companies if they provide sensitive information.
Kogler: “Step towards more transparency”
“The new regulation is an important step towards greater transparency,” said Vice Chancellor and Green Leader Werner Kogler. “Infringements can thus be identified and remedied faster than before.” Whistleblowers will be better protected in the future – they should not be disadvantaged. By pointing out grievances, jobs, careers and financial security need not be put at risk in the future. “It is also very positive that the reports to the responsible office can be made anonymously,” said Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler.
The law regulates the establishment of hotlines in both the public and private sectors. The latter affects companies. Companies with at least 50 employees must set up registration offices in the company. In these instances, signals of irregularities must be followed up, “including with regard to compliance with data protection rules or violations in public procurement,” says Kocher. However, the private sector will also have an external, company-independent reporting agency, which will be based in the Federal Office for Preventing and Combating Corruption (BAK).
A distinction is also planned in the public sector between internal and external control rooms. The federal disciplinary service will have internal reporting points for the public sector and the BAK will also have an external reporting point.
Other contents of the Directive include a delineation of the persons and areas covered by whistleblowing protection, procedures for the handling and documentation of tips and regulatory precautions to maintain existing whistleblowing systems. “In addition, the draft law provides for administrative criminal law provisions for the obstruction and removal of whistleblowers and for unlawfully disclosing their identity,” Kocher said.
The federal government said this was due to the delay “due to intensive negotiations and the clarification of individual outstanding issues”. In addition, only four EU countries have implemented the directive on time, it was emphasized.
Source: Krone
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