1.         REGULATORY SOURCE

Legislative Decree No. 24 of March 10, 2023, implementing Directive (EU) 2019/1937 on the protection of persons who report violations of Union law and national laws, brought together in a single regulatory text the entire discipline of reporting channels and the protections afforded to whistleblowers in both the public and private sectors. The result is an organic and uniform discipline aimed at greater protection of the so-called Whistleblower, who is thus given greater incentive to make reports of wrongdoing within the limits and in the manner indicated in the decree.

 

2.         WHO IS THE WHISTLEBLOWER?

It follows from the combined provisions of Article 1 and Article 2 of Legislative Decree 24/23 that the "Whistleblower" is the person who reports, discloses or denounces to the judicial or accounting authority, violations of national or European Union regulatory provisions that harm the public interest or the integrity of the public administration or private entity, of which he became aware in a public or private employment context.

 

 3.        WHO CAN REPORT?

Persons working in the work environment of a public or private entity in the capacity of:

• Employed workers;
• Self-employed workers and collaborators who work for public sector entities or private entities that provide goods or services or perform works for third parties;
• Consultants;
• Volunteers, trainees, paid or unpaid;
• Shareholders and persons with administrative, management, control, supervisory or representative functions.

 

4.         WHAT CAN BE REPORTED?

The subject of reporting are all behaviors, acts or omissions that harm the public interest or integrity of the public administration or private entity and consist of:

Violations of national regulatory provisions

• administrative and accounting, civil or criminal offenses;
• unlawful conduct relevant under Legislative Decree 231/01 or violations of the Organization Models provided therein;

Violations of regulatory provisions of the European Union

• offenses falling within the scope of European Union acts relating to certain areas listed in Art. 2(1)(a)(3);
• acts or omissions affecting the financial interests of the EU;
• acts or omissions concerning the internal market;
• acts or conduct that frustrate the object or purpose of the provisions of the EU acts.

The report may also cover:

• information on conduct aimed at concealing the above violations;
• unlawful activities not yet carried out but which the whistleblower reasonably believes may occur in the presence of concrete, precise and concordant elements;
• the well-founded suspicions.

Legislative Degree 24/23 does not apply to "disputes, claims or requests related to an interest of a personal nature of the reporting person that pertain exclusively to individual labor relations-or inherent labor relations-with hierarchically subordinate figures."

 

5.         HOW TO MAKE A REPORT?

In order to make reports, Toscana Aeroporti has implemented an internal reporting channel through the "Segnalazioni.net" platform, which guarantees the confidentiality of the identity of the reporter, the person involved or otherwise mentioned in the report, as well as the content of the report and any attached documentation.

The platform used is fully compliant with the regulatory requirements expressed in Legislative Decree 24/23 and the service provider has obtained certification of the solution from ACN (National Authority for Cybersecurity).

Reporting can be done, including anonymously, either in written or oral form by selecting the appropriate mode and following the directions provided.

The internal reporting channel is to be considered the preferred channel and is to be used first and foremost by the reporter.

The legislature has recognized the possibility of making a report through the use of additional tools (such as access to the external channel managed by ANAC, public disclosures, and reporting to the judicial and accounting authorities) only if certain conditions expressly provided for in Legislative Decree 24/23 (Articles 6 and 15) are met.

 

6.         MANAGEMENT OF THE INTERNAL REPORTING CHANNEL

The management of the internal reporting channel is entrusted to the members of the Supervisory Board pursuant to Legislative Decree 231/01 of Toscana Aeroporti S.p.A. who:

• issue the reporter with an acknowledgement of receipt of the report within 7 (seven) days from the date of receipt;
• maintain interlocutions with the person of the reporter and may request integrations from the same, where necessary;
• diligently follow up on the reports received;
• provide acknowledgement of the report within 3 (three) months from the date of the acknowledgement of receipt or, in the absence of such notice, within 3 (three) months from the expiration of the period of 7 (seven) days from the submission of the report.

 

 7.        PROTECTIONS FOR THE WHISTLEBLOWER

The protection measures apply not only to the whistleblower but also to all those who are connected in a broad sense to the whistleblower's organization and/or person:

• facilitators;
• co-workers of the whistleblower who work in the same work context and have a usual and current relationship with it;
• persons in the same work context who are related to the reporter by a stable emotional or kinship relationship within the 4th degree.
• Entities owned by the reporter or for which the reporter works, as well as entities that work in the same work context as the reporter.

 (a) Protection of privacy

The identity of the reporter may not be disclosed to persons other than those competent to receive or act upon the report. This prohibition covers not only the name of the reporter but also all elements of the report from which the identification of the reporter can be derived, even indirectly.

(b) Protection from retaliation

Any form of retaliation is prohibited, i.e., "any behavior, act or omission, even if only attempted or threatened, carried out by reason of the report that causes or may cause the reporting person, directly or indirectly, unfair harm" (by way of example but not limited to: dismissal, suspension, demotion in rank or non-promotion, discrimination or unfavorable treatment, adoption of disciplinary sanctions etc...).

The management of retaliation communications is the responsibility of A.N.A.C