Brief information on the use of the internal reporting channel of RATHGEBER GmbH & Co. KG or smart-TEC GmbH & Co. KG

The Hinweisgeberschutzgesetz (HinSchG - Act for the Better Protection of Whistleblowers) is an act to protect whistleblowers, people who report illegal acts in organizations. It creates mechanisms to encourage people to come forward with information, ensures their confidentiality and protects them from retaliation and unjustified discrimination.

Under Hinweisgeberschutzgesetz (HinSchG – Act for the Better Protection of Whistleblowers), we are obliged to set up and maintain a so-called internal reporting office in accordance with §§ 12-18 HinSchG. The task of the internal reporting office is to operate so-called reporting channels, through which employees and temporary workers assigned to the employer, can contact the internal reporting offices to report information about violations. The internal reporting office will process these reports internally at RATHGEBER GmbH & Co. KG or smart-TEC GmbH & Co. KG in accordance with a legally prescribed process and, if necessary, take follow-up measures.

Important: You can still use the dialog platform for suggestions for improvements in the workplace or information about incidents that are not legal violations, or to make other reports that are not covered by the HinSchG. Thank you!

We would like to provide a summary of the most important points that are relevant to a report in the whistleblower system. For full details, please see our policy.

The following applies: 

• The HinSchG is intended to ensure that you are protected when you report possible violations at work. It is against the law for companies to take certain negative measures, such as suspending, dismissing or excluding you from promotion because you have given a tip. The protective effect also includes relatives and other third parties who are in contact with the whistleblower and could suffer professional reprisals as a result of a report. If, for example, spouses are employed by the same employer and one of them acts as a whistleblower, the whistleblower's spouse is also protected if they are disadvantaged by the employer.
• Confidentiality is not only required by law, we also see it as the most important thing for whistleblower protection! For this reason, the reports received in the whistleblower system are received, reviewed and processed in absolute confidence by the Datenschutzkanzlei Lenz GmbH & Co. KG (= same service provider than our data protection officer, but different team). The whistle-blower receives an acknowledgment of receipt, the report is then checked to determine whether it falls under the HinSchG (Act for the Better Protection of Whistleblowers) and the EU Whistleblowing Directive. In any case, the Datenschutzkanzlei Lenz will contact the reporting person in confidence to clarify and coordinate the further course of events. 
• You can choose to submit a report anonymously. However, it may be essential for the reporting person to be named in order to follow up on the report. When processing anonymous reports, the Datenschutzkanzlei will enter into a dialogue with the reporting person and, where necessary, discuss the next steps with them before they decide whether to disclose their identity. 
• A report can be made about possible violations of the law affecting the company. This means all violations of criminal law or all violations that constitute administrative offenses, as well as violations of applicable legislation relevant to companies.
• We have a great interest in investigating wrongdoing within the company as quickly as possible. However, the rights and protection under the HinSchG does not apply to all reports. Therefore, before reporting, please check whether it falls within the Act’s scope of application, for example, product safety and compliance, consumer protection or the protection of privacy and personal data, as well as the security of network and information systems. You can find information about this in our policy.
• However, you are welcome to submit topics that do not fall within the scope of application at any time via the dialogue platform or pass them on to an executive, the HR department or our data protection officer. All information is important to us!
• Please note: The internal reporting channel is NOT intended for unfiltered suspicions about colleagues. A report should only be reported via the whistleblower system if there is sufficient reason to believe that the information reported is true. 
• It should also be noted that a person who is the subject of a report may have rights under data protection laws. This may, for example, be information about the processing of their personal data. The data protection officer will be happy to provide confidential advice on this before making a report. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact: meldung@datenschutzkanzlei-lenz.de

*Note: In the interest of readability, we refrain from using gender-related wording. People of all genders (male, female, diverse) are addressed at the same time. The abbreviated form of language has editorial reasons and does not include any evaluation.