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Version I, as of January 1, 2024
The complaint procedure of igus GmbH enables all potentially affected persons to point out human rights or environmental risks and breaches of duty that have arisen as a result of the economic activities of igus GmbH in their own business area or in the business area of a supplier, along the entire supply chain.
igus takes the requirements of the LkSG seriously and our goal is to identify potential misconduct along the supply chain at an early stage and to initiate the appropriate measures.
igus achieves this in particular by reporting information about possible violations in connection with the LkSG and consistently following up on these.
Using the complaint procedure set up by igus, all employees and people along our supply chain can inform igus of human rights or environmental risks or violations.
It is ensured that the report can be submitted anonymously and confidentially. This gives igus the opportunity to identify risks at an early stage and, in the best case, solve them before people or the environment are harmed.
There are various internal channels available to report a compliance violation (e.g. reporting to superiors or employee representatives) and the igus whistleblower system is available for both internal and external reports. This can be used without restriction by anyone along our supply chain.
Using our online reporting system whistleblower system (reporting-channel.com), compliance violations can be reported worldwide, around the clock, in different languages and free of charge with just a few “clicks”.
When making a report, the focus of the relevant topic should be in relation to the human rights and environmental risks or breaches of duty in the sense of. Section 2 Paragraphs 2 and 3 LkSG are mentioned.
The human rights-related bans include in particular:
Child labor (usually ban on employing children under 15 years of age)
Forced labor
Slavery, sexual exploitation
Failure to comply with occupational safety regulations under the law of the place of employment
Denial of adequate wages
Use of torture or degrading treatment
Freedom of association
Any action or omission that is likely to have a particularly serious impact on a protected legal position and whose illegality is obvious.
The environmentally-related bans include in particular:
Ban on the production of compounds containing mercury
Prohibition of improper treatment of mercury waste
Prohibition of the production and use of certain chemicals and persistent organic pollutants
Prohibition of non-environmentally sound handling, collection, storage and disposal of waste
Contamination of soil, water, air and excessive water consumption
Any act or omission that is likely to have a particularly serious impact on a protected legal position and whose illegality is obvious.
As part of an initial assessment, the HR department determines whether the report is relevant to human rights or environmental risks or breaches of duty and whether the report submitted is correct. A risk assessment is then carried out to determine possible consequences, for example using a risk matrix.
The person who provided the information receives prompt feedback that the information has been received. Furthermore, interim status reports about each processing step and the final result are transmitted to whistleblowers via the portal in a protected environment.
If relevance and initial suspicion are confirmed, we will initiate an internal investigation as quickly as possible to clarify the matter. The report is checked in detail.
After completing the investigation, igus checks whether measures are necessary to eliminate, minimize or prevent the violation in the future. To do this, we analyze the specific need for correction and improvement. Part of this analysis also includes taking into account the expectations of the group of people affected by the violation. Necessary measures can, on the one hand, represent purely internal measures in our business area, such as process adjustments, new guidelines or improved training concepts. But measures with and towards third parties may also be necessary. The implementation of the measures is monitored appropriately and their effectiveness is closely monitored in small process steps.
All reports, investigations and the results of the investigation are documented and archived in defined locations. They will be stored in accordance with the relevant legal requirements and data protection deadlines. The viewing and access rights to this are strictly regulated. In addition, to the extent required by law, we inform all those affected about the investigations carried out and the personal data processed in this context.
The findings from processing reports are taken into account in the risk analysis. An annual report is prepared and published on the number and handling of tips. In addition, event-related messages/reports are sent to the management.
We review all of the systems and processes set out above in connection with our complaints procedure for their effectiveness on an ad-hoc basis, but at least once a year.
Evidence of possible human rights or environmental risks or violations is of great value to igus and our supply chain.
There is therefore the possibility of anonymous exchange throughout the entire complaint process. The confidentiality of the anonymous exchange is guaranteed at all times. There is no logging of the IP address. The following procedures have been introduced to provide technical protection for the whistleblower:
Transport encryption: All data stored in the whistleblower system databases (reporting-channel.com) is encrypted.
Rule-based deletion routines support data protection-compliant deletion.
Regular IT security audits monitor system security.
By submitting a report in the igus complaint process, the person making the report will not face any negative consequences. The confidentiality of the exchange is ensured at all times (see point 3) and is also guaranteed internally through appropriate measures.
If you have any comments or information about our complaints procedure, our HR department will be happy to help you on 02203/9639 - 151.