INTRODUCTION
The following procedure, addressed to both SIRIUS advokater, 3F International and 3F, describes the obligations associated with the handling of reports submitted through 3F International’s Complaints Scheme.
3F International/3F has established a channel through which reports may be submitted concerning harassing conduct exhibited by employees, partners, beneficiary groups and local communities of 3F International, concerning violations/breaches of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ and 3F International’s guidelines and policies governing 3F International’s work, 3F International’s partner contracts, as well as the international conventions of the UN and the ILO.
The individuals entitled to submit reports under the Scheme, and the matters that may be reported under the Scheme, are described in further detail in 3F International’s Complaint Policy.
SIRIUS advokater is responsible for the administration of the scheme and the handling of reports received.
Reports shall be submitted electronically through https://3f-international.legalsys.dk/complaint-scheme/.
ALLOCATION OF RESPONSIBILITY
SIRIUS advokater shall conduct the legal assessment and handle the processing of the reports received in accordance with the Complaint Policy and applicable data protection rules. SIRIUS advokater’s handling of reports includes:
· Registering and documenting reports and manage communications with the reporting parties;
· Follow up on reports, including by clarifying and investigating the reported circumstances through further inquiry;
· Prepare a written report with a recommendation to the Complaint Responsible and the management of 3F in cases where a report has given rise to follow-up action;
· Assist the complaint Responsible and 3F’s management in assessing which consequences, if any, should follow from a report, including the issuance of a warning or exclusion
The final decision on the initiation of any legal consequences (including exclusion) shall be taken solely by the Complaint Responsible and the management of 3F. SIRIUS advokater shall, however, be available to provide legal assistance in connection with the determination of any consequences.
PROCESS FOR HANDLING OF COMPLAINTS
SIRIUS advokater will respond to the reporter as follows:
· Acknowledge acceptance of the report within 5 working days from the report was received
· The Reporter will receive a follow up communication from SIRIUS advokater within 30 days after the report was received.
· The reporter will receive information when the case has been closed.
SIRIUS advokater may deem it necessary to undertake further investigations, which may include any measures necessary to:
· Have the allegations set out in the report examined.
· Verify or disprove the accuracy of the information provided.
· Initiate any necessary response to the reported circumstances.
In this regard, SIRIUS advokater may find it necessary to obtain further information internally within the organization by contacting individuals who may have witnessed or otherwise become aware of the relevant circumstances.
Where SIRIUS advokater considers it necessary to obtain further information, the practice governing such inquiries shall, where necessary, be agreed in further detail with the Complaint Responsible and 3F’s management a depending on the case.
In connection with any further investigation, SIRIUS advokater shall ensure a professional and objective handling of the matter, including the appropriate involvement of the parties concerned.
Depending on the content of the report, where the issues in questions have taken place and what rules have been violated, it might be necessary to require local assistance to both investigate and assess the reported issues. All decisions in this regard are finally taken by the Complaint Responsible in cooperation with the management of 3F.
On the basis of the information obtained in the investigation, SIRIUS advokater must prepare a report, which shall be submitted to the Complaint Responsible management.
In the report, SIRIUS advokater must account for the report submitted, as well as for the conduct and results of the follow-up investigation and shall make a recommendation as to whether the matter may give rise to any consequences. SIRIUS advokater may furthermore recommend a subsequent course of action, including whether a formal lawyer-led investigation should be initiated or whether an exclusion process should be commenced. SIRIUS advokater may also recommend that the matter be closed due to lack of, or insufficient, evidence
On the basis of SIRIUS advokater’s report and recommendations, the Complaint Responsible and/or 3F’s management shall make the final decision on any consequences or any further investigation.
CONFIDENTIALITY
SIRIUS advokater shall ensure that all reports are treated as strictly confidential and processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation.
DUTY TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO THE REPORTING PARTY AND OTHERS
Under the Complaints Scheme, the reporting party shall be informed of the processing of his or her personal data performed by SIRIUS advokater in connection with the report.
SIRIUS advokater shall concurrently assess, in accordance with applicable data protection legislation, whether and to what extent other individuals mentioned in the report must be notified. In such cases, these individuals must be informed of the purpose of the processing of their personal data and of their rights.
Correspondingly, 3Fshall assess its duty to provide information to the individuals included in a report that is forwarded to the organization in connection with follow-up action, as 3Fitself must act as the data controller for such processing of personal data.
RIGHTS OF REGISTRED INDIVIDUALS ACCORDING TO GDPR
As with the duty to provide information, there is no obligation to comply with a request for access when private interests justify a refusal.
However, it will rarely be possible to justify a refusal of the individual’s request for access by reference to ‘overriding private interests’. Accordingly, in respect of all requests for access, careful consideration must be given to whether, and to what extent, the request may be refused.
SIRIUS advokater will in cooperation with the Complaint Responsible and/or 3F’s management assess such data subject requests.
As regards the other rights – including the right to object, the right to rectification or erasure, and the right to data portability – both SIRIUS advokater and 3F will often be required to retain the data in order to investigate individual reports and to maintain records for the purpose of identifying repeat cases and establishing links between matters. Consequently, data will rarely be erased, and rectification shall only take place where inaccuracies in objective facts are substantiated.
SIRIUS advokater will, in cooperation with the Complaint Responsible and/or 3F’s management assess such requests relating to the individual’s rights.
In this context, it should be noted that all requests must be responded to within 30 days, including where a request is refused.
WHEN MUST THE DATA BE ERASED?
Reports may only be retained for as long as they are necessary and proportionate for the purpose of the processing, namely the handling of behavioral complaints.
There is no fixed time limit for how long reports may be retained. However, it will not be necessary to retain reports that prove to be manifestly unfounded. SIRIUS advokater must therefore ensure that such reports are deleted immediately once this is established.
Correspondingly, SIRIUS advokater must ensure that information relating to a report which falls outside the scope of the complaints scheme is deleted immediately after the reporting party has been notified that the report is not covered by the Scheme.
Where a report falls within the scope of the Complaints Scheme, SIRIUS advokater shall retain the report and the personal data contained therein in a case file established for that purpose, in order to investigate the matter further. The case shall thereafter be retained in accordance with SIRIUS advokater’s data protection policy.
Where a report gives rise to measures or reactions, SIRIUS advokater shall also transfer the case to the Compliant Responsible and 3F’s management, and retention shall thereafter be governed by 3F’s data retention and deletion procedures.
The respective retention periods applied by SIRIUS advokater and 3Ffor the personal data contained in a report shall thereafter depend on the nature of the report and shall thus be subject to a specific, case-by-case assessment.