Student

Whistleblowing

The purpose of whistleblowing is to discover serious wrongdoing or misconduct, and to investigate and rectify it. If you have information about wrongdoing or misconduct, or suspect it is happening, then reporting it is a good idea. It can only be investigated and dealt with once Södertörn University is made aware of it.

Södertörn University works continually on maintaining a healthy administrative culture. Whistleblowers have a vital role in protecting and promoting values that are important in a democratic society, such as openness and transparency.

Sweden has legislation that protects people who report wrongdoing or misconduct, who are generally called whistleblowers. The law came into effect on 17 December 2021 and, in brief, entails that:

  • You may not be prevented from, or punished for, whistleblowing.
  • Sometimes, you may circumvent confidentiality.
  • More people can now whistleblow.

The “Whistleblowing Act” also states that public agencies must ensure that employees are able to whistleblow and that a whistleblower’s identity is protected by confidentiality. For whistleblowing to be covered by the Act, there are requirements that you must be in the category of people able to do so, the wrongdoing or misconduct must fulfil certain criteria and you must submit your report in the stated manner. You can read the Act on Riksdagen's website External link, opens in new window. (only available in Swedish).

The whistleblower function is for university staff and for other people who observe something that may imply corruption or other serious irregularity. These people are:

  • Employees
  • Job applicants
  • Volunteers
  • Interns
  • Sole traders performing a commission
  • Shareholders

  • Corruption
  • Misuse of public funding
  • Criminal acts
  • Regulatory breaches
  • Breaches of competition law

The Whistleblowing Act becomes relevant in cases of misconduct or wrongdoing that have a negative effect on the public (on public interest), or if there is a suspicion that Södertörn University is in breach of certain laws and regulations.

If the wrongdoing instead concerns bullying, harassment or sexual harassment, you should talk to your line manager, HR or a union representative.

Wrongdoing that relates to public interest

The more often misconduct or wrongdoing occurs, or if it occurs systematically, the greater the public interest. The Whistleblower Act does not come into play for information regarding your own work or your employment.

Breaches of certain laws and regulations

The Whistleblower Act comes into play if you suspect that the university is in breach of EU regulations on: public procurement; financial services, products and markets; the prevention of money laundering and financing terrorism; product safety and product conformity; transport safety; environmental protection, radiological protection and nuclear safety; food and animal feed safety and animal health and wellbeing; public health; consumer protection; protection of private and family life and personal data; and the security of networks and information systems.

Södertörn University uses an external channel via the KPMG auditing company, which will receive the report and make an initial assessment.

Whistleblow via a digital form

Whistleblow using a digital form on KPMG's whistleblower service External link, opens in new window.

Whistleblow via voicemail

You can also whistleblow by calling a voicemail service on 0771 401 659.

When using the whistleblower service or voicemail, you can also request to make a report at an in-person meeting.

  1. KPMG’s receiving unit receives the case (and confirms receipt if the person making the report has created an account for further contact or provided contact details in another manner).
  2. KPMG’s receiving unit makes an initial assessment of the case.
  3. KPMG reports to Chief Administrative Officer Hans E Andersson and Pro-Vice-Chancellor Nils Ekedahl (investigators). They make an assessment, together or separately – depending on the case – along with relevant experts, decide on the progression of the case and provide a response to KMPG.
  4. A response is provided to the person making the report, if they have created an account or provided contact details in another manner.

When you whistleblow, you are entitled to protection under the Swedish Act (2021:890) on protection for people who report irregularities (“Whistleblower Act”).

Södertörn University’s internal reporting channel is a secure system that is provided by an independent party, KPMG. KPMG’s whistleblower service is entirely independent of Södertörn University’s external website and employee web, and can accept reports at any time of day.

When making a report, you may choose to be anonymous or provide contact details. It is not necessary to create an account to make a report, but it does make further investigation of the case easier. To ensure that people making reports can remain anonymous, KPMG does not save IP addresses or other metadata. The system also protects the report and any information about the person(s) whose identity is stated in the report.

Read more about confidentiality in whistleblowing cases below Rättslig vägledning (Medarbetarwebben, in Swedish). External link, opens in new window.

University management of personal data

Södertörn University is the controller for the processing of personal data that is performed due to the reporting of misconduct or wrongdoing, as well as in any investigation that follows such a report. More information about personal data processing during the management of reports of misconduct or wrongdoing is available here (in Swedish):
Information om högskolans personuppgiftsbehandling vid hantering av rapporter om missförhållanden Pdf, 112.6 kB.

Read more about whistleblowing

Read the EU directive that is the foundation for the Whistleblower Act. External link, opens in new window.
Read the Whistleblower Act (only available in Swedish). External link, opens in new window.
Read the Government Bill on the Whistleblower Act (in Swedish) External link, opens in new window.

Share

Facebook Mail Twitter

Page updated

15-03-2023