The 9th of March 2022 in Romania, did not only bring the first day outside the state of alert, but also developments in relation to the highly anticipated and closely monitored process of locally implementing the Whistleblower Protection Directive (WPD). The Romanian Government approved a draft law to transpose the WPD into local law.
NB: as the WPD implementation deadline has been defaulted by several EU Member States (including Romania), the EU Commission prompted compliance via letters of formal notice. This typically gives EU Member States 2 months to rectify so we expect Romania to be making efforts to swiftly turn this draft into law.
Next steps and possible timeline
Government approval is not sufficient for entry into force, but an important step to move the process further. After the draft law is approved by the Government, it will be submitted to Parliament for debate and final approval. The possible timeline for parliamentary debate is still uncertain. Considering the current social and political context, it is hard to tell if this will be considered a priority therefore mandating an emergency procedure. Nevertheless, as Romania missed the deadline and the draft law has a planned entry into force date on 31 March 2022, we expect further developments in the upcoming period (maybe not strictly adhering to this optimistic deadline, but soon).
Two draft laws on the same topic
On 24 November 2021, a (different) draft law on the implementation of the WPD was also registered in Parliament for debate. It seems that the legislative process for that draft law is still on-going.
Therefore, there are currently 2 draft laws on the same topic namely: (i) the one already pending before the Parliament and (ii) the one just approved by the Government, which we expect will be presented to Parliament and only one may turn into law. So, at this moment, it is uncertain which of the draft laws will actually come into force.
What is next from an employment perspective?
Generally employers with 50+ headcount should monitor and take at least some preliminary preparatory steps for the WPD implementation in Romania, as they will have a new set of obligations once the law comes into force. Mainly they will have the obligation to implement internal reporting channels and a corresponding internal policy / procedure. Ensuring the effectiveness of internal channels at local level is key for protecting information within the business. It should be supported by clear communication and trusted policy and procedures so it is paramount to be as prepared as possible when the law comes into force.
In conclusion: things are moving forward and we should all be prepared: from our side – we are closely monitoring the WPD implementation process in Romania (on both draft laws) and from employers’ side – it might be useful to review current policies and processes to determine whether there is any gap considering WPD standards to be able to ensure compliance and effective internal reporting channels in a timely manner when the local law standards become known and applicable.
More to explore
