Last February 21st, the Official State Gazette published the Law 2/2023, of February 20th, regulating the protection of persons who report regulatory breaches. The Law transposes into Spanish law Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019, known as the Whistleblowing Directive. This new Law provides for protection against retaliation for persons who report specific breaches and enters into force on March 13th.
This Newsletter aims to summarise the Law's main business-related features.
Who does this Law protect?
The Law provides for protection for persons working in the private or public sector who become aware of breaches in an employment or professional context (commonly known as whistleblowers). The protection covers: (i) persons working in the public or private sector; (ii) persons having self-employed status, contractors, subcontractors and providers; (iii) whistleblowers with a terminated employment or statutory relationship; (iv) volunteers, interns, trainees or persons taking part in recruitment processes; and (v) shareholders and members of the board.
Additionally, the Law also grants protection to: (i) the whistleblowers' colleagues or relatives; and (ii) the companies the whistleblowers work for, or with which it has a relationship within the employment context, or in which they hold significant shareholdings.
This Law provides for protection for whistleblowers who report any of the following infringements: (i)...
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