A whistleblower who submits a report, in accordance with the provisions of Law 6(I)/2022, is automatically protected from a series of actions that could be characterized as vindictive behavior or retaliation, while, at the same time, he enjoys important protection measures.
1. Judicial measures to stop retaliatory conduct and claim damages
In the event that a whistleblower suffers any retaliatory behavior or harm, he/she has the right to apply to a competent court (Labor Disputes Court or District Court or Administrative Court, as the case may be), to remove any retaliation, and at the same time, to claim any damages. The whistleblower must prove that he filed a report or made a public disclosure and that as a result of his action he suffered some harm, e.g., he was fired, or demoted, or a disciplinary investigation was initiated against him, etc. Then, a rebuttable presumption is created that the harm is a result of retaliation because of the report he filed. That is, it is now up to the other person to prove that the measure that caused the damage did not constitute retaliatory action, but was based on duly justified reasons, unrelated to the fact of the filing of the report. If the Court decides that the whistleblower has indeed suffered any retaliation and/or harm due to retaliatory conduct, then it will award damages covering both the material damage and any moral or physical harm the whistleblower has suffered. At the same time, any retaliatory measure suffered by the whistleblower is considered void ab initio, i.e. as if it never happened. In fact, if a person was fired because of the filing of a report and wishes to return to work, then the Labor Disputes Court will even order his reinstatement.
2. Protection from any civil liability
In some cases, the whistleblower in order to support his report may need to share with the internal or external reporting mechanism, or during public disclosure, information, data, documents, for which some restriction applies, e.g. confidentiality reasons or personal data protection. If the employee has reasonable grounds to believe that the disclosure of this information was necessary to reveal the violation, then he will not be considered to have violated these restrictions and therefore will not be liable for any civil liability. However, this protection does not extend to cases where obtaining or accessing this information constitutes a separate criminal offence. Therefore, if the whistleblower by sharing the information commits a criminal offense then he can be prosecuted. In addition, the whistleblower who submitted a report in accordance with the provisions of N.6(I)/2022, is not liable in relation to civil proceedings, such as the action for defamation, infringement of intellectual property rights, breach of the obligation of confidentiality, violation of the rules for the protection of personal data, disclosure of trade secrets, or for claims for compensation under private, public or collective labor law. In fact, in the event that such a case is initiated against him, the whistleblower has the right to plead that he submitted a report or made a public disclosure, in accordance with the provisions of N.6(I)/2022 and request that the lawsuit be dismissed.
*Note: Whistleblowers are protected from liability for breach of confidentiality, provided that the information has not been provided in violation of the rules protecting classified information, legal or medical confidentiality, confidentiality of court hearings, and rules of criminal procedure, or access to these and their notification do not constitute a criminal offence, and provided that they do not involve violations of rules on issues or contracts related to defense or security issues, unless they are covered by the relevant acts of the European Union.
3. Witness in criminal proceedings
Depending on the nature of the content of the report and the seriousness of the case, criminal proceedings may be initiated against a person named in the complaint. In such a case, it is possible that the informant will need to testify as a witness before the Court to facilitate the establishment of the charge. N.6(I)/2022 provides that in such cases, the informant enjoys protection measures aimed primarily at preserving his anonymity, such as, for example, testifying in the absence of the accused, testifying through closed circuit television, his testimony was videotaped. In fact, depending on the case, this person can also be included in the Protection of Witnesses and Associates of Justice Plan.
4. Employer’s obligation to contribute
Every employer must protect employees from any act of their supervisor or any person responsible for them, which constitutes retaliation due to the report, and take all appropriate and timely measures to prevent them. Employers, as soon as they become aware of specific retaliation due to the report, take appropriate measures to remove and not repeat the retaliation, as well as to remove its consequences. In the event that employers do not take measures to prevent the above behaviors, then they may be considered accomplices, that is, they may be considered to have the same responsibility as if they themselves had carried out retaliation, threats or retaliatory actions against the whistleblower.