The whistleblower

Objectives

The purpose of this procedure is to introduce a system enabling the reporting of perceived irregularities at ASTEK Polska sp. z o.o. with its registered office in Warsaw (hereinafter also: “the Company”) on the basis of applicable regulations, in particular the Act on the Protection of Whistleblowers of 14 June 2024.

The purpose of the whistleblowing system put in place at the Company is to enable employees, associates and potential employees or associates to voluntarily report – in good faith – irregularities (whether clearly observable or those that are reasonably suspected) that lead or may lead to a breach of the law, within the scope of the irregularities provided for in this procedure.

Application

This procedure applies to:

1. all employees (including temporary employees) and associates of the Company,
2. proxies,
3. partners,
4. interns, trainees, volunteers

the natural persons referred to in this point above, in the event of knowledge of irregularities provided for in this procedure obtained in a work-related context prior to the establishment of the employment relationship or of any other legal relationship giving rise to the provision of work or services or the exercise of functions in or for the Company, or after their termination.

Source documents and related

Documents used in the preparation of this document.

1. A Whistleblower may be: an employee, a former employee, an applicant for employment, a person providing or applying for employment or services on a basis other than employment, a businessman, a president or a member of the board of directors, a proxy, a partner, a supplier, an intern, a volunteer, or a representative of another interested party of the Company.
2. A Whistleblower acts in good faith and disinterestedly and has reasonable grounds to believe that a wrongdoing has occurred or is likely to occur.
3. A person who has suffered damage as a result of a Whistleblower knowingly reporting false information is entitled to compensation or damages for violation of personal rights from the Whistleblower who made such a report.
4. Any case of whistleblowing that turns out to be unsupported by evidence and made in bad faith, with malicious intent or with the knowledge that it is untrue, constitutes a serious offence and may lead to the application of measures provided by law for such situations.
5. A Whistleblower reporting an irregularity under this system shall disclose his or her identity to the Whistleblowing Committee, unless he or she reports anonymously. The personal data of the Whistleblower and other data enabling the Whistleblower’s identity to be ascertained shall not be disclosed except with the express consent of the Whistleblower.
6. All facts, events, actions and correspondence arising from a whistleblowing report, as well as the identity of persons related or potentially related to the case and facts relating to the report itself, will be treated confidentially, as appropriate for the conduct of the relevant investigations. The Irregularities Committee will take steps to ensure confidentiality.

The following breaches of the law may be reported under this procedure which are illegal acts or omissions or which are intended to circumvent the law and which relate to:

1. corruption;
2. public procurement;
3. financial services, products and markets;
4. anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing;
5. product safety and compliance;
6. environmental protection;
7. consumer protection;
8. privacy and data protection;
9. security of ICT networks and systems;
10. financial interests of the State Treasury of the Republic of Poland, of the local government unit and of the European Union.

Examples: the commission of corrupt acts by employees or associates of the Company by giving financial benefits to the Company’s counterparties in the form of payment for holidays in exchange for the conclusion of business contracts favourable to the Company, the commission of tax fraud by illegally reducing the amount of taxation.

Internal reporting

1. Submissions can be made openly, i.e., the Whistleblower provides his or her personal data as part of the submission, in particular his or her first and last name, or anonymously, i.e., without providing data which makes it possible to identify the Whistleblower.
2. The person authorised to receive reports and to conduct further communication (including requesting additional information) with the Whistleblower is any member of the Irregularities Committee.
3. Notification of irregularities or suspected irregularities is received by e-mail to a dedicated address, by letter by dispatch to the Company’s address or by telecommunications call to a dedicated telephone number, in order to ensure an appropriate level of confidentiality of the information provided. The whistleblower has the right to request a face-to-face meeting (at one of the Company’s offices) within 7 days of sending the report.
4. Within 7 days of the Whistleblower ‘s notification, a representative of the Company will confirm to the Whistleblower the acceptance of the internal reporting, unless the Whistleblower has not provided a route or contact address to which the confirmation should be forwarded.
5. Feedback to the Whistleblower on the report submitted will be provided within a maximum period of 3 months counted from the date of acknowledgement of acceptance of the internal report, unless the Whistleblower has not provided a route or a contact address to which feedback should be provided. The feedback will include, in particular, information on whether or not a breach has been identified and on the measures, if any, that will be or have been taken in the situation of the breach.

External reporting

1. The Whistleblower has the right to make an external reporting without first making an internal reporting to a central authority or a public authority, in particular of the Commissioner for Civil Rights Protection.
2. The Whistleblower may choose the external reporting route in particular when:
   1. The Company has failed to provide feedback on the submission within the timeframe set out in the Procedure or fails to follow up despite the existence of a legitimate need to do so.
   2. The Whistleblower has reasonable grounds to believe that the violation of the law may constitute a direct or obvious threat to the public interest, in particular there is a risk of irreparable harm.
   3. making an internal reporting will expose the notifier to retaliation.
   4. where an internal reporting has been made, there is little likelihood of the Company successfully countering the infringement due to the specific circumstances of the case, such as the possibility of concealment or destruction of evidence or the possibility of collusion between the Company and the infringer or the Company’s knowing participation in the infringement.
3. The Whistleblower has the right to make an internal reporting and, in parallel, to make an external reporting.
4. A notification made to a public authority or a central authority bypassing an internal reporting does not have the effect of depriving the whistleblower of the protection guaranteed by the Act.

Applications may be made in writing, by sending by post the application form attached as Annex 1 to the Procedure or by sending an e-mail containing the form attached as Annex 1 to the Procedure to the address indicated below or by telephoning the telephone number indicated below, providing information in accordance with the items contained in the form attached as Annex 1 to the Procedure.

In particular, the notification should contain the following information:

• indicate their identity if the Whistleblower does not wish to make an anonymous report
• whether the Whistleblower agrees to disclose his or her identity in the proceedings
• indicate the date of disclosure, the place, the persons involved and a detailed description of the facts;
• provide the elements that make it possible to exchange information with the Whistleblower: preferably an e-mail address or, failing that, a postal address
• attach to the Application Form any information or documents in his or her possession, in any form or on any medium, which may form the basis of his or her application (paper documents, USB stick, CD, etc.).

Notification by letter form

1. The Whistleblower should make an application using the completed application form attached as Annex 1 to the Procedure. The completed application form should be sent to the following address:

Address for correspondence:
Astek Polska sp. z o.o. with its registered office in Warsaw
Irregularities Committee
Jana Pawła II 22, Warsaw 00-133 

2. Reports should only be submitted to the Irregularities Committee with the notation “confidential”. This committee is composed of members of the various departments of the Company and each member of the Irregularities Committee is entitled to review the report.
3. In the case of dispatch, it is recommended to send by registered post with acknowledgement of receipt, in a double envelope, with the inner envelope marked “Whistleblowing System” to be opened only by the Whistleblowing Committee.

Notification by e-mail

1. Notifications made by the Whistleblower via email should be made to the following email address: sygnalisci@astek.net
2. The notification to be made should take the form of and contain the information set out in Annex 1 to the Procedure or should be attached to the notification sent to the e-mail address indicated.

Notification by telephone communication

1. Notification by the Whistleblower via telephone communication should be made to the following telephone number: 884 321 629
2. Notification in this form will be made by recording a message via a call made to the telephone number indicated.
3. By using this form of notification, the Whistleblower agrees to the recording and to the transcription of the recording, which is necessary to make a notification using this technical solution.
4. If the Whistleblower does not agree to be recorded, the Whistleblower cannot make a report using this form of report and is invited to choose another form of report available to the Company.

The notification will be considered by the Irregularity Committee, which will be composed of at least three (3) members. The members of the Irregularities Committee will be selected from the different departments of the Company in order to be able to objectively consider each notification in each situation.

The Irregularities Committee will consider each application with members who will not be directly or indirectly related to the application under consideration.

Once a report has been accepted, in each case all members of the Irregularities Committee will be informed of the substance of the report and will collectively set a meeting date to examine the matter in question in its entirety and to determine the next steps to be taken. In the event that one or more members of the Irregularities Committee are directly or indirectly related to the circumstances or facts forming the basis of the report, he or they will be excluded from further work of the members of the Irregularities Committee at the appointment stage.

Admissibility of notification

Each notification will be examined in the light and scope of the procedure in question, in particular whether the notification exhausts the grounds of an infringement being an unlawful act or omission or designed to circumvent the law in the areas indicated in point 4.1.

Informing the person concerned

Information relating to the notification will be communicated by the members of the Irregularities Committee to the person concerned within the time limits indicated in paragraph 4.2.1 by means of or to the address indicated in the notification, while maintaining the confidential nature of such information.

Confidentiality of identity

Strict confidentiality will be maintained with regard to the Whistleblower, the facts reported and the persons concerned.

Information which may enable the identification of the Whistleblower may only be disclosed with the express consent of the Whistleblower or in situations provided for by law, such disclosure being made only to the extent necessary as provided for by law.

Data protection

Only authorised persons, who are part of the Irregularities Committee and who are bound to secrecy, have access to personal data under the above procedure.

The personal data processed in the process of handling Whistleblowers requests are processed exclusively on the Company’s systems and on company equipment.  Dedicated solutions are used: an e-mail box, a telephone number, a place on a sharepoint and employees’ business equipment, ensure the integrity, confidentiality and availability of the personal data processed there. Only authorised persons have access to personal data in the above process.

Data storage

Submissions made by Whistleblower are recorded in the Register of Whistleblower Submissions with the date of the submission. Registered submissions are kept for 3 years from the date of recording.

Access to the Register is restricted to the authorised members of the Irregularities Committee.

Right of access and rectification

A person whose personal data we process in connection with the handling of a request has the right of access and the right of rectification in accordance with Articles 15 and 16 of the RODO. The extent of the rights and the situations in which they can be exercised depends on the law.

The exercise of the above rights must not adversely affect the rights and freedoms of others

Protection measures and prohibition of retaliation

1. The Company assures that no retaliatory action will be taken against the notifier and any Facilitator, any person related to the notifier and any legal entity or other organisational unit related to the notifier, in particular owned, collaborated or employed by the notifier,
2. By virtue of having made a report, the Whistleblower, a Facilitator, a person related to the Whistleblower whose work or services are or are to be provided on the basis of an employment or other legal relationship shall be protected by law and retaliatory actions such as:
   • refusal to enter into an employment or cooperation relationship, termination or termination without notice of an employment or cooperation relationship,
   • failure to conclude a fixed-term employment contract after the termination of a probationary contract, failure to conclude another fixed-term employment contract or failure to conclude an indefinite-term employment contract after the termination of a fixed-term contract – where the employee had a legitimate expectation that such a contract would be concluded with him,
   • reduction in remuneration for work or services rendered, withholding of promotion or omission from promotion, omission from the award of benefits other than remuneration related to work or cooperation,
   • transfer to a lower post,
   • Suspension from the performance of employee or job duties, as well as the transfer to another employee of existing job duties,
   • an unfavourable change in the place of work or working time schedule,
   • negative performance evaluation or negative opinion of the job,
   • the imposition or application of a disciplinary measure, including a financial penalty, or a measure of a similar nature,
   • withholding of participation or omission from selection for professional qualification training,
   • unjustified referral to a medical examination, including psychiatric examination, insofar as separate regulations provide for the possibility of referring an employee to such an examination,
   • an action to make it more difficult to find future employment in a particular sector or industry on the basis of an informal or formal sectoral or industry agreement,
   • causing financial loss, including economic loss or loss of income,
   • the infliction of other non-material damage, including damage to personal rights, in particular to the Sygnalist’s good name.

Exclusion of liability

A Whistleblower who has publicly reported or disclosed information, under the conditions provided for in this procedure, shall not be civilly liable for damage caused as a result of his or her reporting or public disclosure if, at the time of such reporting, he or she had reasonable grounds to believe that reporting or public disclosure of all such information was necessary to protect the interests at stake and acted in good faith.

Responsibility

1. In the event that it is established, either as a result of a preliminary analysis of the report or during the course of the investigation, that the irregularity report knowingly contains untruths or conceals the truth, the notifier, who is an employee, may be held liable under the provisions of the Labour Code. Such behaviour may also be qualified as a grave breach of fundamental labour obligations and as such result in termination of the employment contract without notice.
2. In the event that a report is made by a person other than the Employee and the Whistleblower, in making the report, acts with the intent to knowingly give untruths or conceals the truth, the Company may take action to discontinue cooperation with such person or terminate the already existing cooperation with immediate effect for valid reasons.
3. Notwithstanding the consequences indicated above, a whistleblower who knowingly makes a false report of irregularities may be held liable for damages, in particular for damages or compensation for infringement of personal rights.

ASTEK employees and co-workers, regardless of the legal basis of their employment, status, position and any other differences, should function in a healthy, properly functioning work environment – free from any unprofessional behaviour detrimental to their good name, as well as the name of ASTEK Polska sp. z o.o.

Rules of conduct in the ASTEK employee environment

All ASTEK employees and associates, regardless of their legal basis of employment, are obliged to collectively care for the working environment and are obliged to:

• Adhere to and promote the values represented by ASTEK,
• Performing duties in a conscientious, responsible manner with due diligence,
• Take care of the good name of ASTEK Polska sp. z o.o.,
• Comply with rules relating to safety, confidentiality, non-compete, hygiene and the working environment,
• Mutually respect colleagues and any third parties
• in the business and partnership relationships undertaken, i.e. Contractors, Customers, Suppliers, third parties and ASTEK stakeholders,
• Respect ASTEK’s entrusted property and the property of other colleagues and third parties,

In addition, we oblige ASTEK employees and collaborators to refrain from any behaviour that is commonly regarded as unprofessional, detrimental to the good name and damaging to the interests of ASTEK Polska sp. z o.o.

Principles of conduct towards contractors, customers, stakeholders and third parties

Our relationships are guided by respect, dignity and integrity – this allows us to create and build partnerships based on trust and quality. We expect fundamental values from our employees and associates that allow us to build structures and bonds that are maintained over the years:

• Conducting all relationships with due dignity and respect for the other person,
• Relationships with Contractors, Customers, stakeholders and third parties should promote relationships that are fair, based on mutual trust and the quality of service provided,
• A high level of personal culture is required in all interpersonal contacts, regardless of their nature.

APPLICATION FORM

INFORMATION OBLIGATION UNDER THE WHISTLEBLOWING SCHEME