Source: en.epicenter.works
A draft whistleblowing law issued in Austria has received criticism from civil society. As part of the legislative process to adopt new laws, the government conducted a consultation on a draft proposal for a new law to transpose the EU Directive on whistleblower protection.
NGO epicenter.works have published their consultation response online and raised concerns that the proposed legislation does not go far enough by adopting a too narrow material scope, limiting the freedom of the whistleblower to choose the most appropriate reporting channel, and not ensuring robust independence of the oversight body. The full legal analysis and statement can be read here.
Posting to their website epicentre.works state:
“Given this state of affairs, the law will probably fail in its actual purpose: Providing individuals with a clear-cut, secure legal space to expose breaches of the law and corruption. The legal framework that has been created offers neither more legal certainty or transparency nor is it more logical. At least there is an option for anonymous reports, and there are provisions for the protection of whistleblowers whose identity becomes known without any action on their part. But on the other hand, an individual on their own will hardly find their way through the maze of rules in this law. Therefore companies with 50 workers or more (the law applies only to them) and public institutions are meant to provide advice themselves. The latter must for instance publish the procedure for filing reports and how this can be done anonymously. So potential whistleblowers should be instructed by potential perpetrators on how to best make their wrongdoings public? This may afford good public-relations opportunities for companies to make themselves look good in the eye of the public. But why did lawmakers miss the opportunity to simply provide clarity themselves, in order to offer a really transparent and protected path for revealing misconduct?”
Anti-Corruption NGO Transparency International Austria have also published a statement on the draft whistleblowing law.
Austria is already delayed in implementing the Directive which should have been fully transposed by all 27 EU member states by 17 December 2021. The Commission has begun infringement proceedings against most EU countries for this delay.