Whistleblower Defence

WHISTLEBLOWER DEFENCE

YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO REPORT LEGAL IRREGULARITIES

 

WHISTLEBLOWER PORTAL

This whistleblower portal is available to all employees of USD Formteiltechnik GmbH and all external whistleblowers who have obtained information about violations in connection with their professional activities and wish to report this to USD Formteiltechnik GmbH.

The following link will take you directly to the whistleblower portal of USD Formteiltechnik GmbH.

 

Important questions and answers about the whistleblower system can be found here:

Why should I submit a report?

Compliance with legal, social and internal company rules is part of a positive and open corporate culture. Perhaps you are aware of behaviour that is damaging to the company. But perhaps you are reluctant to pass on this information personally. To enable you to report such behaviour nonetheless, USD Formteiltechnik GmbH offers a digital platform for submitting reports either by name or, if desired, anonymously. By setting up an anonymous mailbox, you can actively contribute to clarifying the situation.

 

Who is the whistleblower system intended for?

The whistleblower portal is available to all employees of USD Formteiltechnik GmbH and all external whistleblowers who have obtained information about violations in connection with their professional activities and wish to report this to USD Formteiltechnik GmbH.

 

What is the intention of the whistleblower system?

It is in the interest of every employer (and therefore also of USD Formteiltechnik GmbH) to enable reports of legal violations to be made in order to uncover and remedy abuses and thus avoid further adverse consequences, in particular to reduce damage to our association, our employees and our business partners. At the same time, whistleblowers should be protected, in particular from consequences under labour law in connection with a report.

These two points (the employer's interest in information about legal violations on the one hand and employee protection on the other) are taken into account by the introduction of a whistleblower system. The system serves to provide you, as employees, and also external third parties who recognise and wish to report a legal violation in connection with their professional activities, with a protected space for doing so. Reports can therefore be made via the intranet and also via external devices via the internet.

 

What offences can I report via the whistleblower system?

Reports can be made about specific legal violations in connection with professional activities. These include, for example, violations that are punishable by law, such as corruption, fraud and theft, but also violations that are punishable by fines, provided that the violated regulation serves to protect life, limb or health or the rights of employees or their representative bodies, violations of legal provisions relating to road safety, environmental protection and others. The legal regulation contains a catalogue of violations that can be reported via the whistleblower system.

Reports of conflicts affecting the workplace, e.g. bullying, are not covered by this catalogue. One of the first steps taken by the internal reporting office will be to check whether the violation falls under this catalogue and to provide appropriate feedback to the whistleblower.

 

Is there only one digital portal for submitting reports?

Reports can be submitted via a digital system, either anonymously or non-anonymously (as you prefer). The system can be accessed via the intranet or the USD Formteiltechnik GmbH website. In addition to the digital tool, you can also contact the internal reporting office by telephone or in person.

 

Does USD Formteiltechnik GmbH operate its own digital portal?

USD Formteiltechnik GmbH does not operate the digital reporting portal. The portal is provided by an external service provider commissioned by USD Formteiltechnik GmbH. The provider is specially certified for this purpose and is commissioned by many well-known companies to manage the portal. The section for USD Formteiltechnik GmbH is adapted to this. 

At the same time, USD Formteiltechnik GmbH has also entrusted this service provider with the tasks of the internal reporting office. The service provider and its employees are, of course, bound to confidentiality.

 

How does the reporting process work using the digital tool?

Your report is made in a guided process. In individual steps, you will be asked to answer questions or describe a situation. You can also upload files, such as photos. Your information will be recorded by the internal reporting office. You will also receive feedback on your case from there.

 

How does reporting work?

• If you would like to submit a report by name or anonymously, click on the link to the whistleblower system on the USD Formteiltechnik GmbH website. You will be automatically redirected to the digital whistleblower system. At the bottom of the introductory page, click on the ‘Submit new report’ button.
• The reporting process consists of several steps, which the system will guide you through.
• To protect your anonymity, you will be given a password that allows you to access your reports at any time.
• You will be asked to assign your report to a category.
• On the subsequent reporting page, you can formulate your report in your own words. You can also send a file, e.g. photos, to support your report. Please note the file size specified by the system and remember that documents may contain information about the author.
• After submitting your report, you will receive confirmation that you have sent it.
• You will only receive feedback via this portal, so you must keep the access code safe in order to receive replies or further questions from the internal reporting office at a later date. Communication will only take place via this channel and not via verbal communication or general email correspondence!
• We guarantee that we are solely interested in the facts you report. The identity of the person reporting the information is completely irrelevant. The aim is to uncover malpractice and prevent financial damage.

 

How can I receive feedback while remaining anonymous?

The password you received when you submitted your report gives you access to your report and the mailbox on the digital portal at any time. You can use this to receive feedback, answer questions and stay informed about the progress of your report. The mailbox serves as a communication channel between you and the internal reporting office.

 

Is my data actually protected?

The digital tool uses end-to-end encryption. This means that as long as you do not enter any data that could be used to identify you, the system will protect your anonymity.

We treat your report as confidential in all cases (regardless of whether the report is anonymous or named, made via the digital tool, by telephone or in person), as USD Formteiltechnik GmbH is interested in the information provided, not the person providing it.

You are free to use your own devices to report via the link on the USD Formteiltechnik GmbH website. However, even if you choose to use the intranet, USD Formteiltechnik GmbH will not attempt to determine the IP address of your computer. This will not be done by the internal reporting office, nor can the management of USD Formteiltechnik GmbH instruct the internal reporting office to do so.

 

Is my identity also protected if I am not the person making the report but am affected by the content of the report?

You may be affected by the content of a report if you are the subject of a report or are mentioned in the report for other reasons. In these cases, too, the internal reporting office must maintain confidentiality regarding the identity of these persons. However, it may be necessary to disclose your identity for internal investigations or for USD Formteiltechnik GmbH to take follow-up measures. In such cases, it will be necessary to weigh up whether it is absolutely necessary to disclose your name. As far as possible, attempts will be made to investigate the matter without specifically naming names.

 

What happens if I deliberately submit false information?

Before submitting information, please bear in mind that your information may have serious consequences for people involved in the matter. Therefore, please use the whistleblower portal responsibly! Only submit information that you are convinced is accurate to the best of your knowledge and belief. Once reports have been submitted via the digital tool, they cannot be withdrawn.

The law also considers knowingly false reports to be an administrative offence and obliges the person submitting the report to compensate for any damage caused by the deliberate or grossly negligent reporting of false information. If it transpires that the internal reporting system is being misused through an intentional or grossly negligent report, USD Formteiltechnik GmbH will investigate whether it is appropriate to forward the report to the investigating authorities. If an external investigating authority such as the public prosecutor's office or the police launches an investigation, this may involve attempts to uncover the identity of the person making the report. USD Formteiltechnik GmbH has no influence over this. 

 

What happens after a report is made?

The internal reporting office checks whether the content of the report falls within the scope of the whistleblower protection system. The internal reporting office may ask further questions via the digital portal. Once the facts have been established, the reporting office can initiate follow-up measures in accordance with the Whistleblower Protection Act. The report, prepared in this way, is brought to the attention of the management of USD Formteiltechnik GmbH in a confidential manner. As the party ultimately responsible for USD Formteiltechnik GmbH, the management decides whether internal investigation or referral to investigative authorities is appropriate.

 

Will I find out what finally happened with my report?

In addition to the confirmation of receipt, USD Formteiltechnik GmbH will provide final information indicating whether no further action, an internal investigation or an external investigation will be conducted. Naturally, USD Formteiltechnik GmbH cannot report on external activities. No details regarding the content will be disclosed. We kindly ask you to refrain from making any enquiries regarding the status of your report.

 

Area of application of the whistleblower system

 

What information can be reported to the whistleblower system or processed via this system?

The legislation for better protection of whistleblowers and for the implementation of the Directive on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law (HinSchG) specifies the information that falls within the scope of the legislation and is therefore subject to further processing when reported. This includes

1. breaches that are punishable by law,
2. violations that are punishable by fines, insofar as the violated provision serves to protect life, limb or health or to protect the rights of employees or their representative bodies,

3. other violations of federal and state legislation as well as directly applicable legal acts of the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community

    

• to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, including in particular the Money Laundering Act and Regulation (EU) 2015/847 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on information accompanying transfers of funds and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1781/2006 (OJ L 141, 5.6.2015, p. 1), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2019/2175 (OJ L 334, 27.12.2019, p. 1), as amended,
• with requirements for product safety and conformity,
• with requirements for road safety relating to road infrastructure safety management, safety requirements in road tunnels and admission to the occupation of road haulage operator or road passenger transport operator (coach operator),
• with requirements to ensure railway operational safety,
• with requirements for maritime safety concerning European Union regulations for the recognition of ship inspection and survey organisations, the liability and insurance of carriers when transporting passengers by sea, the approval of marine equipment, maritime safety investigations, seafarer training, the registration of persons on passenger ships in maritime transport, and European Union regulations and procedural rules for the safe loading and unloading of bulk carriers,
• with requirements for civil aviation safety in terms of preventing risks to operational and technical safety and in terms of air traffic control,
• with requirements for the safe transport of dangerous goods by road, rail and inland waterway,
• with requirements for environmental protection,
• with requirements for radiation protection and nuclear safety,

• or the promotion of energy from renewable sources and energy efficiency,

• on food and feed safety, organic production and labelling of organic products, protection of geographical indications for agricultural products and foodstuffs, including wine, aromatised wine products and spirit drinks, and traditional specialities guaranteed, the placing on the market and use of plant protection products, and animal health and welfare, insofar as they concern the protection of farm animals, the protection of animals at the time of killing, the keeping of wild animals in zoos, the protection of animals used for scientific purposes, and the transport of animals and related operations,

• on quality and safety standards for organs and substances of human origin, medicinal products for human and veterinary use, medical devices and cross-border healthcare,
• the manufacture, presentation and sale of tobacco products and related products,
• the regulation of consumer rights and consumer protection in relation to contracts between businesses and consumers, and the protection of consumers in the area of payment accounts and financial services, price indications and unfair commercial practices,
• on the protection of privacy in electronic communications, on the protection of confidentiality of communications, on the protection of personal data in the electronic communications sector, on the protection of privacy of users' terminal equipment and of information stored in such terminal equipment, on protection against unwanted advertising by means of telephone calls, automatic calling machines, fax machines or electronic mail, as well as on the display and suppression of telephone numbers and inclusion in directories,
• the protection of personal data within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 1; L 314, 22.11.2016, p. 72; L 127, 23.5.2018, p. 2; L 74, 4.3.2021, p. 35) in accordance with Article 2 thereof,
• on information technology security within the meaning of Section 2(2) of the BSI Act by providers of digital services within the meaning of Section 2(12) of the BSI Act,
• on the regulation of the rights of shareholders in public limited companies,
• on the audit of public-interest entities pursuant to Section 316a sentence 2 of the German Commercial Code,

• on accounting, including bookkeeping, for companies that are capital market-oriented within the meaning of Section 264d of the German Commercial Code, credit institutions within the meaning of Section 340(1) of the German Commercial Code, financial services institutions within the meaning of section 340(4) sentence 1 of the German Commercial Code, securities institutions within the meaning of section 340(4a) sentence 1 of the German Commercial Code, institutions within the meaning of section 340(5) sentence 1 of the German Commercial Code, insurance companies within the meaning of section 341(1) of the German Commercial Code and pension funds within the meaning of section 341(4) sentence 1 of the German Commercial Code, 

1. Violations of federal and uniform regulations for contracting authorities regarding the procedure for awarding public contracts and concessions and regarding legal protection in these procedures once the relevant EU thresholds have been reached,
2. Violations covered by Section 4d (1) sentence 1 of the Financial Services Supervision Act, unless otherwise specified in Section 4 (1) sentence 1,
3. Violations of tax laws applicable to corporations and commercial partnerships,
4. Violations in the form of agreements aimed at obtaining an abusive tax advantage that is contrary to the objective or purpose of the tax law applicable to corporations and commercial partnerships,
5. Violations of Articles 101 and 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and violations of the legal provisions referred to in Section 81(2)(1), (2)(a) and (5) and (3) of the Act against Restraints of Competition,
6. Violations of the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2022/1925 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 September 2022 on contestable and fair markets in the digital sector and amending Directives (EU) 2019/1937 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Digital Markets Act) (OJ L 265, 12.10.2022, p. 1),
7. Statements by civil servants that constitute a breach of the duty of loyalty to the constitution.

 

The HinSchG also applies to the reporting and disclosure of information on

1. breaches of the protection of the financial interests of the European Union within the meaning of Article 325 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and
2. infringements of internal market rules within the meaning of Article 26(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, including European Union rules on competition and state aid that go beyond those referred to in paragraph 1(8).