Whistleblowing and Transparency in the Private Sector of Germany

Abstract

Whistleblowing is a transparency mechanism that occurs when a person working within an organization reveals internal information about irregularities. In the private sector this disclosure may violate the interests of the private company to keep its company secrets and avoid public scandals that could be harmful to it. Labor law frequently resolve that conflict and according to the case law of the ECHR in general freedom of expression and the public interest to know the irregularities have to be protected. There is no specific legislation to protect Whistleblowers in Germany, and intense discussions about the need for such laws and about the internal mechanisms have been created in companies. These increasingly advanced mechanisms are within the scope of Compliance and can encompass instruments such as an internal complaints office or a lawyer outside the company (so called “Ombudsman”). Also there are controversies about the relationship between these internal mechanisms and the external complaint (police, prosecution, press) and the prevalence between them.