In accordance with the Whistleblower Protection Act of June 24 2024 (Ustawa o ochronie sygnalistów, Dz. U. 2024, poz. 928), Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. introduced an internal procedure for reporting on breaches of law and follow-up, hereinafter referred to as the Procedure. The purpose of the Procedure is to establish a mechanism for reporting on any improper activities in the Shipyard or activities of its employees that may constitute a breach of law, in a manner that is effective, impartial, confidential and secure for the Whistleblower. Reporting on potential breaches of law is in the best interest of the general public, as well as in the best interest of the Shipyard and its employees.
What constitutes a breach of law?
A breach of law is any act or omission that is unlawful or aims to defeat the purpose of the rules of law, particularly in the following areas:
1) Corruption;
2) Public procurement;
3) Financial services, products and markets;
4) Prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing;
5) Product safety and compliance;
6) Transport safety;
7) Protection of the environment;
8) Radiation protection and nuclear safety;
9) Consumer protection;
10) Protection of privacy and personal data;
11) Security of network and information systems;
12) Financial interests of the State Treasury of Poland, local government unit and the European Union;
13) Internal market of the EU, including breaches of Union competition and State aid rules, as well as breaches relating to the internal market in relation to acts which breach the rules of corporate tax;
14) Constitutional rights and freedoms of human and citizen – in connection with relations between a person and public authorities, which are not covered in pts 1-13.
Who can report a breach of law?
Any person reporting a breach of law is considered a Whistleblower and is therefore protected by law. Any person who obtains information about a breach of law in the context of work in the Shipyard can become a Whistleblower, including: Shipyard employees, B2B contractors, subcontractors, members of corporate organs or shareholders of Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A., a trainee, as well as a job candidate.
How can I file a report?
Reports can be filed either by telephone or by e-mail by contacting the Shipyard’s Ethics Officer (Rzecznik Etyki). Additionally, a report in writing can be placed in a special mailbox in building C-177 or sent by post to the postal address of the Shipyard, with the inclusion of “Rzecznik Etyki”. The same channels of communication may be also used to arrange a meeting in person with the Ethics Officer. Regardless of its form, the report should contain every relevant information available, including a detailed description of the issue, an indication of potential witnesses and documents that may act as proof of a breach in question. In accordance with the Procedure, anonymous reports will not be investigated.
Who will be investigating the report?
Reports are investigated by an independent Breach of Law Unit comprised of 3 persons, which is tasked with the investigation of the report as well as with the protection of the identity of the Whistleblower. Only members of the Unit have access to personal information of the Whistleblower and shall not, under any circumstance, disclose it to any person within the Shipyard.
How will the report be processed?
The Breach of Law Unit will issue a confirmation of reception of the internal report within 7 days after receiving the report. Later, within 3 months after confirmation of reception, the Unit shall provide follow-up to the Whistleblower, which will include information on relevant decisions and the action envisaged or taken as follow-up. As part of the investigation, the Unit may contact the Whistleblower for additional information. Follow-up may include, among others, notification of competent authorities about the possibility of a crime, launching of control procedures, court action of the Shipyard, as well as other adequate measures. Furthermore, the Unit is obliged to present a report of the follow-up to the Company Board, which may include general recommendations applicable to similar occurrences in the future.
What protection measures are offered to the Whistleblower?
Identity of the Whistleblower is protected by the Breach of Law Unit. Furthermore, any acts of retaliation against the Whistleblower, which may include mobbing, reduction in wages, lay-off, dismissal, withholding of promotion, demotion, coercion, intimidation or any other activities undertaken as an act of retaliation for filing a Report are strictly forbidden. Any act of retaliation against a Whistleblower, as well as hindering or attempting to hinder reporting constitutes a crime. Appropriate protection is also offered to facilitators of the report and persons related to the Whistleblower.
Is it mandatory to file a report to the Unit? Can I directly inform competent authorities about a breach of law?
The Whistleblower may at any time choose to resort to external reporting. i.e. to file a report on a breach of law to the competent authorities without using the internal reporting channels. Such reporting is governed by appropriate procedures of the authority in question. The Whistleblower may also perform an act of public disclosure by making information on breach of law available in the public domain, in specific instances provided in the Whistleblower Protection Act.
How does the Shipyard protect personal data within the Whistleblowing procedure?
Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. acts as administrator of your personal data for the purpose of performing duties related to maintenance of internal reporting channels.
Personal data are processed in accordance with personal data protection principles listed in Article 5 of GDPR,* most importantly in accordance with principle of lawfulness, fairness and transparency as well as principle of data minimization – to the extent necessary to verify the report and undertake necessary follow-up. The Administrator provides appropriate organizational and technical measures in accordance with Article 32 GDPR to ensure that personal data of the Whistleblower, person concerned, and third persons mentioned in the report.
The Administrator ensures that personal data included in the report are available only to personnel authorized in writing to process personal data, and ensures that authorized personnel is obliged to protect the confidentiality of information and personal data obtained while performing duties related to whistleblowing, i.e. accepting and investigating reports and carrying out the follow-up.
The Administrator informs the Whistleblower, persons concerned by the report and persons mentioned in the report on data protection regulations. Appropriate data protection clauses for Whistleblowers, persons concerned, persons mentioned in the report and third persons can be found in the Privacy Policy.
*GDPR – Regulation on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation), OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 1-88.