INFORMATION ABOUT THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS RELATING TO INTERNAL WHISTLEBLOWING

The present information is provided pursuant to art.12 nap.4 of the Act on Protection of Persons, Reporting Information or Publicly Disclosing Information about Breaches published in the state Gazette issue 11 from February 2nd 2023 in force as from May 4th 2023 (Whistleblowers Protection Act)
   

       1. Who has the right to submit an alert?

  • current or former employees and workers;
  • persons employed under a civil contract
  • freelancers or craft workers;
  •  volunteers and interns;
  • contractors, subcontractors and suppliers;
  • job applicants or contest participants vying for a position who are about to enter an employment relationship;
  • Any person who came across information about wrongdoing in a work-related context.

IMPORTANT! ANONYMOUS REPORTS SHALL NOT BE CONSIDERED!

        2. What kind of breaches can be reported?

For breaches to the Bulgarian and European legislation in various areas, among them: 

  • public tenders and contracts;
  • public healthcare;
  • transport safety and security;
  • consumer protection;
  • personal privacy and personal data protection;
  • network and information systems safety and security;
  • breaches related to cross-border taxation schemes;
  • crimes of general nature;
  • labor legislation;
  • legislation related to public services provision;
  • rules and regulations on the payment of public State and municipal receivables and other fields specified under the Whistleblowers Protection Act.

IMPORTANT! REPORTS FOR BREACHES WHICH ARE NOT COVERED BY THE PROVISIONS OF THE WHISTLEBLOWERS PROTECTION ACT AS WELL AS ALERTS OVER TWO YEARS OLD SHALL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

        3. How to report to “RILA-BOROVETS” AD?

You can file a written report by filling out a standard form and chose from the options below:

  • personally to our officer in charge of alert handling;
  • via e-mail by sending it to: signals@rilaborovets.com
  • by post or courier – to the address of “RILA-BOROVETS” AD (2010, Samokov city, BOROVETS resort, hotel “RILA”). It is mandatory to expressly state the Whistleblowers Protection Act responsible person’s name as the receiver on the postal/courier parcel or typing a text on the postal/courier parcel identifying that it contains a report under Whistleblowers Protection Act.

IMPORTANT! THE REPORTS MUST BE SIGNED BY THE PERSONS WHO SUBMIT THEM. REPORTS SUBMITTED BY EMAIL MUST BE E-SIGNED.
IMPORTRANT! THE USE OF THE STANDARD FORM IS NOT A MUST. IT IS THERE FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE AS IT FEATURES THE REQUIRED DATA THAT MUST BE FILLED IN. Should your report fail to meet any of the legal requirements our employee in charge of report handling shall send you a message to help you correct the irregularities within a 7 days period upon reception. In the event the irregularities are not corrected within said period the report along with all attachments to it shall be sent back.

It is advisable to attach all written evidence available to you. You may also indicate persons who may confirm the reported data or provide additional information.

Oral reports may be filed in one of the following manners:

  • By telephone to our officer in charge of report handling - 075090013; 0882864007.
  • Face to face to our report handling officer on a scheduled appointment made at said telephone number.

In any such case our report handling officer shall fill-in the data in the standard form and shall give you the option to review, correct and approve the text of your conversation translated from oral to written and the content of the form by signing it.

        4. What follows after the report is being filed?

  • We shall confirm the reception of the report within 7 days and shall register it under a unique ID number. Should the report fail to meet the requirement of the Law we shall inform you asking you to correct the irregularities within a 7days period.
  • A control and investigation of the reported facts shall be conducted by a person who is not in a situation of conflict of interest.
  • Within three months from the confirmation of the report reception we shall give you feedback about the outcome of the control and the subsequent actions. 

        5. How are the whistleblowers protected?

  • The persons who have the right to submit alerts as well as all related persons (such as coworkers and relatives) are protected from any unfounded disclosure of their identity unless permitted by the Law.
  • Retaliatory measures towards the protected persons are forbidden, namely: temporary suspension from work, lay-off, demotion, negative performance assessment, applying financial and disciplinary measures, physical and oral coercion, intimidation, animosity, attempt to personal dignity, discrimination etc. 

        6. Under what conditions is protection granted?

  • The person submitting the report must have a well-founded reason to believe that the submitted information about the wrongdoing was true as at the moment of its submission and that such information matches the application field of the Whistleblowers Protection Act; and
  • The report is filed in compliance with the terms and regulations of the Whistleblowers Protection Act.

IMPORTANT! THE PERSONS DESIGNATED IN THE REPORT AS VIOLATORS SHALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO COMPENSATION FOR ALL MATERIAL AND IMMATERIAL DAMAGES IN CASE IT IS PROVEN THAT THE REPORTING PERSON HAS DELIBERATELY SUBMITTED UNTRUE INFORMATION.

        7. How to submit an alert to the Commission for Personal Data Protection?

The Commission for Personal Data Protection is the Central Body for external submission of alerts. You can as well send your alert directly to the Commission in one of the following manners:

  •  written:
  • by e-mail: whistleblowing@cpdp.bg
  • by post to: 1592 Sofia city, 2, “Prof. Tzvetan Lazarov” Blvd.
  • by the System for safe e-submission
  • orally: to the Commission for Personal Data Protection at: 1592 Sofia city, 2, “Prof. Tzvetan Lazarov” Blvd.

To register an alert for wrongdoing you can also use the standard form available for download on the site of the Commission for Personal Data Protection. The form is not mandatory. Still, should you wish to use it you will need to fill-in Part I – V incl. only and sign it: if sent by post- by hand; if emailed – e-signed. 
If you use the system for safe e-submission the officer serving on the Commission for Personal Data Protection, responsible for examining the report will contact you to ensure that a Form for registering an alert for submission of information about breaches according to Whistleblowers Protection Act is filled-in.