The routines are approved by the Board of Directors at QMUC, December 3, 2008 - adjusted in January 2011 - adjusted after consideration by union representatives on 30 January 2018.
Section 2 A-1. The right to notify censurable conditions at the undertaking
Section 2 A-2. Protection against retaliation in connection with notification
Section 2 A-3. Obligation to prepare procedures for internal notification
Section 2 A-4. Duty of confidentiality in connection with notification to public authorities
The students are exempt from the provisions of the Working Environment Act, but are still included in these routines and can notify on an equal footing with employees at QMUC.
In general:
The notification routines focus on how to alert about critical matters and how an alert should be followed up.
- Legal and ethical issues that are common in working life apply
- The report must be in accordance with agreed routines
- Employees have the right and duty to make a statement about critical matters in the workplace, but must take into account that the employer, the work environment and colleagues, students and others don`t get unnecessarily harmed
- A report must be followed up in a thorough manner and there shall be no risk connected to make a report about censurable conditions
- Whistleblowing is a serious matter, and normally other ways of resolving the issue should be tried before a report.
- The reason why one should notify is that the employer at QMUC should gain knowledge that makes it is possible to take the necessary measures.
What is whistleblowing?
Whistleblowing or reporting censurable conditions, is to tell about subjects worthy of criticism that are somehow related to QMUC as a workplace or study site.
What are subjects worthy of criticism?
Critical matters include violations of laws, regulations and/or ethics norms.
Examples: bullying, harassment, unwanted sexual attention, discrimination,
substance abuse, misconduct in the conduct of teaching, research, administrative-technical
tasks, conditions that endanger people's lives and health, hazardous products, embezzlement, corruption, theft, fraud, financial adultery, etc.
The Working Environment Act's notification rules do not limit what one can notify about. The Working Environment Act states that the employee must notify the cases that the employee becomes aware of and that the employee finds contrary to:
- Laws and regulations
- The company's policies and procedures
- General perception of what is justifiable or ethically acceptable
Who to notify?
A) To the head of class or teacher: Students are encouraged to notify the teacher or head of class. If there are conditions that make one not want to notify any of these, one can notify directly to the prorector who is above in line of the head of class/teacher.
B) To leader: It is encouraged to notify internally in the line of your immediate superior or
to the rector if it is natural to go higher up in the line.
C) To the safety representative of the department or union representatives: You can also notify the manager internally through a safety representative or union representatives if you do not want to address the matter with your nearest leader or directly with the rector.
D) To the Chairman of the Board: You can also notify the Chairman if you do not want to notify any of the above.
The report to QMUC must, as a rule, be in writing
The report is placed in a closed envelope until it is notified. Written reports shall include the following point:
- Name of the whistleblower (If desired/necessary, anonymity can be ensured in the further
process)
- Date of notification
- Date or time of the observation/incident
- Description of what has been observed/happened
- Place of the incident
- The name of persons present
- Information about whether the incident has been observed or experienced any time previously
Principles for handling alert cases at QMUC
- All inquiries must be taken seriously
- All inquiries must be addressed immediately
- Anonymity is possible
- All notifications require and must be treated confidentially
- The whistleblowing system should be used without fear of consequences
The whistleblower must receive written feedback within a reasonable time
How to handle the notification
Anyone who is notified should contact the rector about the matter.
If a case is opened due to the report, the report must be recorded. The employer must do an assessment of who should be involved in the further processing and which measures should be taken. If it is concluded that this is a personnel matter, the law and regulations for such matters shall be followed.
When the case is pending, the documents must be regarded as internal documents and can be exempted public insight.
Retaliation against notifications is illegal. The prohibition on retaliation is important to ensure a safety framework for the whistleblower.
Feedback to the whistleblower
The notifier shall receive a feedback that the report has been received. Questions about transparency are regulated in the Public Administration Act and the Personal Data Act. Whoever notifies must receive feedback on the outcome of the notification.
In addition, the notifier shall be informed of who knows his/her identity and at what level in the organization the case will be handled.
Confidentiality
The identity of the whistleblower shall be treated as confidential information. However, it can be necessary to make the identity known to the people who will take part in the investigation.
The consideration of the person(s) reported about
If the report does not prove to be correct, the employer should carefully consider if those concerned should be notified about the allegations. The working environment and what would best serve the person (s) allegedly involved are important factors to be taken into consideration.
In cases where the employer decides to pursue the case, the person(s) the case concerns shall immediately be notified and, as a general rule, be told about the content in the report and be given the opportunity to contradict the report.
When the case has been processed, the person(s) in question shall be notified immediately.
Deletion of personal data
Personal information is deleted when it is no longer needed for report. Personal data that is considered unfounded should be deleted immediately.