Malta
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Complaints and Allegation Policy
COMPLAINTS AND ALLEGATIONS POLICY - MALTA
Our Firm in Malta is committed to conduct its business to the highest global standards of ethics and behaviour. These standards are succinctly articulated in the PricewaterhouseCoopers Global Code of Conduct with which every partner and member of our staff is expected to be familiar.
The proper application of any set of rules requires not only a deep understanding of those rules but also a set of appropriate processes to ensure that they are being followed and a set of appropriate sanctions when they are not. These processes must include a policy for dealing with complaints or allegations of unethical or other bad behaviour in a fair manner which fully protects the honest complainant whilst assuring the person against whom the complaint or allegation is made that he/she will be accorded a fair hearing. This document deals with this policy.
1. Types of complaints or allegations
Complaints or allegations can be made with regard to personal conduct or to cases of business wrongdoings. The processes for dealing with either type of complaint or allegation are identical in the Malta firm and recourse to them is available equally to the firm’s partners and staff as well as to other persons not forming part of the firm.
Business wrongdoings relate to the violation of a rule of law or formal rule of conduct in relation to a client or in relation to the firm as an employer and could include fraud and dissipation of funds, but also cover such other matters as for instance, the unauthorised use of company property or the manipulation of information.
Complaints of personal conduct in the workplace could relate to cases of alleged humiliation, discrimination, sexual harassment, aggression or violence.
2. Procedure for making a complaint or allegation
Any person making a complaint or allegation (hereinafter “the complainant”) should do so either in writing or verbally in person to the firm’s Senior Partner. The Senior Partner is bound to keep a record of all complaints or allegations.
In the event that the complainant is not comfortable with addressing the complaint or allegation to the Senior Partner he or she can address it to any other partner of the firm in a manner similar to that which would have been used if the compliant was made to the Senior Partner, i.e. either by making the compliant in writing or verbally in person. The partner receiving the complaint or allegation must immediately report the same complaint in all its details to the Senior Partner without discussing the complaint with or disclosing it to any other person (which, for the avoidance of doubt, includes also any other partner). Anonymous complaints or allegations are not encouraged, so however that it shall be up to the Senior Partner to determine whether an anonymous complaint or allegation should be pursued or otherwise.
Once the Senior Partner becomes aware of the existence of a complaint or allegation, he shall make an assessment of the facts of which he is aware with a view to determining whether an investigation should be conducted in respect of the particular complaint or allegation. Should he be of the view that such investigation is appropriate, the Senior Partner shall order the commencement of such investigation and determine also :
a) the scope of the investigation;
b) the form the investigation should take, which however shall ensure that the complainant is afforded suitable opportunity to substantiate the allegation or complaint made and any person whose acts or omissions may be subject to investigation shall be afforded suitable opportunity to provide his/her version of events; and
c) to whom the report of the findings should be made.
Within three days of receiving a complaint or allegation the Senior Partner will inform both the complainant and the firm’s Risk Management Partner of his/her decision regarding whether an investigation should be carried out or otherwise.
3. Investigations
Investigations will be carried out by a Complaints Committee, which would ordinarily comprise the Senior Partner and the Risk Management Partner, so however that in respect of any specific complaint or allegation, the Senior Partner may set up a Complaints Committee constituted wholly or partially of other individuals.
The Senior Partner will keep the complainant informed as the investigation progresses.
The Complaints Committee will keep appropriate records of its investigations. A report on the findings of the investigations will be sent to the firm’s Council, so however that the Senior Partner may otherwise determine in any specific case in the light of the particular circumstances.
4. Remedial action
Where the results of any investigations indicate deficiencies in the design or operation of the firm’s quality control policies and procedures, remedial action will be taken to promptly address those deficiencies. In addition, if the investigations conclude that all or any of the firm's partners and/or employees have failed to comply with the procedures set forth in a firm's Code of Conduct or in any of its policies, appropriate remedial action will be taken with respect to the responsible partner(s) or member(s) of staff.
The remedial action which shall be adopted in the circumstances will be determined by the Complaints Committee in consultation with the firm’s Council.
5. Action in respect of Complainants
Irrespective of whether the investigation confirms the allegations, no person who comes forward in good faith will be subject to any disciplinary or any other punitive action, solely as a result of raising the specific concerns, and any person who retaliates in any way against another person raising a concern in good faith will be subject to disciplinary or other punitive action.
However any person who abuses the procedures by raising a concern which he/she knows to be untrue or uses the process for inappropriate purposes will be subject to disciplinary or other punitive action.
31 May 2005