In December 2021, a new law came into force – the so-called whistleblower law (SFS 2021:890) – which, in practice, is a tightening of previous legislation in the field.
The purpose of the law is to facilitate and encourage whistleblowing, as well as to enhance the protection for whistleblowers. The regulations prohibit employers from taking reprisals against the whistleblower. Reprisals may include, for example, dismissal, termination, reassignment, withholding of pay increases, derogatory remarks, bullying, and other actions. The employer may be liable for damages if such measures are implemented.
The law covers a broad range of individuals, not just regular employees in the business, including temporary and borrowed personnel, but also job seekers, interns, functionaries and volunteers, individuals in senior management, and shareholders of a limited liability company.
Vasaloppet is keen to ensure that misconduct or irregularities that have occurred within the organization, and which may harm the business or its employees, are brought to attention and investigated as early as possible.
A report to the whistleblower function can be made anonymously. We have chosen to receive and investigate all reports through an external entity to ensure correct legal processes. The whistleblower function is used to report all types of misconduct or irregularities.
When should the function not be used?
A whistleblower function should not be used to report personal misconduct that only affects the person reporting or their own work situation. This may include conflicts between the reporter and another employee, opinions about leadership, salary issues, and expressions of dissatisfaction. In most cases, this is not deemed to be of public interest and should therefore be handled internally within the respective organization.
How to make a report
Vasaloppet’s whistleblower function is called Trust&heart and is managed by the external and independent entity Human&heart. You can make a report online, by phone, letter, or at a meeting with Human&heart.
visselblasning.trustheart.se/vasaloppet
Phone +46 (0)8-82 40 00, open 08:00–16:00.
Trust & heart
Pelle Bergs backe 3c
791 50 Falun
When assessing and investigating reports through the whistleblower service, our partner Human & heart HR AB processes personal data as the data controller. You can read their privacy policy here.
Human & Heart’s privacy policy
Read through the information on when and how to make a report before making a submission.
What do I need to consider?
- You are protected against reprisals under applicable law if you report situations where you have reasonable grounds to believe that information about misconduct is truthful.
- You have the right under the law to remain anonymous both in relation to the recipient of your whistleblower report and to your employer. At the same time, we encourage you to be open about who you are so that we can investigate what has happened effectively. You can also be open about your identity to the whistleblower function while remaining anonymous to your employer.
What happens after I submit my report?
When you submit your report, a case number is created, and a case officer is assigned to your case. An internal conflict of interest check is conducted to ensure that no case officer has a conflict of interest with what has been reported.
You can always track the status of your case by logging in with a special ID and password. You will receive follow-up on the status of your case within seven working days. You can choose not to receive follow-up by indicating this in the case description.
The case officer may want to contact you. If you have chosen to receive follow-up on the case, you can log in with the details you received when you reported a misconduct. You can then continue, if you wish, to remain anonymous to the case officer. If you have chosen to provide contact information, the case officer may contact you to ask questions.
The case will result in one of the following actions:
- A preliminary investigation is initiated to determine, through internal or external investigators, whether misconduct or other serious situations have occurred.
- After a preliminary investigation, the case may proceed to a full investigation with the aim of clarifying whether an infringement has occurred or not.
- The case may be dismissed.
- The case may be referred to other law enforcement authorities or regulatory bodies.
If your report turns out to be false
If you report situations that you know have not occurred, or if you provide obviously misleading information, you are not protected under applicable legislation. You also must not commit any offences when reporting a situation. Obviously false or misleading reports may be subject to investigation.
