Whistleblower protection act adopted by the Senate.

2024 / 06 / 10

The Senate adopted the whistleblower protection act on Wednesday, 5 June 2024. Senators decided to make 5 changes to the bill. Now the bill will return to the Sejm, where MPs will decide whether the changes made by the Senate should be approved. As a reminder, the new regulations on protection of whistleblowers are aimed at implementing EU Directive 2019/1937 which Poland should have implemented more than 2 years ago.

Employment law crossed out from the list of breaches

Undoubtedly, the most significant change introduced by the Senate is the deletion of employment law from the list of breaches that can be reported by whistleblowers.

This decision was taken for fear of distorting the institution of the whistleblower. In the first place, the experts felt that focusing on breaches under the employment law could lead to disregarding public law breaches. In addition, they also pointed to the possibility of using the whistleblower protection law to enhance protection against dismissal, which would be contrary to its subject matter and purpose.

Other changes

Apart from the above change, the senators also proposed that whistleblowers should have the right to get free legal assistance and free counseling, even if they have the means to incur such costs. The remaining three changes are of editorial nature.

Implement the new regulations together with Andersen

The new whistleblower protection regulations will come into force 3 months after their publication in the Journal of Laws, except for the provisions on external reporting, which will take effect 6 months after the publication.

Thus, the time for implementation and preparation for the planned changes is becoming scarce.

We encourage you to contact Andersen experts for support in the process of adapting to the solutions and for assistance in preparation of the relevant procedures.

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