The aim is to incentivize employees and other interested parties to report potential violations, offenses or frauds they have witnessed in their work context, without the fear of retaliation or discrimination as a result of the report. Thus extending the protection measures envisaged for public employees also to the private sector, and introducing common minimum standards of protection in order to give uniformity to national regulations that are currently extremely fragmented and heterogeneous.
“This is the so-called Whistleblowing Directive (DWB) – explains the lawyer. Maria Hilda Schettino specialized in corporate criminal law of Rödl & Partner – which by 17 December 2021 must be implemented in Italy and in the other Member States of the European Union. In detail, the whistleblowing system outlined by the Directive will require companies with more than 50 employees to: set up internal, external and public reporting channels that are safe and suitable for protecting the confidentiality of the whistleblower’s identity; implement procedures to follow up and verify the report received, as well as prohibit any retaliation against the whistleblower, due to the report made, also including indirect forms of discrimination, such as negative performance assessments, missed promotions or negative references. Companies with a number of employees between 50 and 250 will still have time until December 17, 2023 to adapt to new regulatory obligations. “
In Italy, the whistleblowing discipline currently provides for a differentiation between the public sector and the private sector and, with particular regard to the latter, whistleblowing systems are closely linked to the organizational model aimed at preventing the liability of entities from crime. pursuant to Legislative Decree 231/2001.
“At present, this means that, on the one hand, only employees, directors and managers of companies that have voluntarily adopted the 231 models can benefit from the protections provided by the law against retaliation acts – clarifies the lawyer. Schettino di Rödl & Partner – and, on the other hand, that the only relevant reports are those relating to the potential commission of predicate offenses or the potential violation of the organizational model or code of ethics. Instead, with the implementation of the DWB, numerous changes will be introduced to the current Italian legislation, first of all the expansion of the number of protected subjects and the matters that may be subject to reporting as well as the introduction of support measures for the whistleblower. Consequently, the implementation of whistleblowing systems in the private sector can no longer be linked to the organizational model alone. “
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