S.L. 452.107 Art. 9Confidential information.

(1) A person who is or at any time was -

(a) a member of a Special Negotiating Body;

(b) a member of a European Works Council;

(c) an employees’ representative in the framework of an information and consultation procedure; and

(d) an expert assisting a Special Negotiating Body or a European Works Council, shall not disclose any information or document which is or has been in his possession by virtue of his position as described in paragraphs (a) to (d), which has expressly been provided to him in confidence.

(2) In this regulation a person specified in sub-regulation (1)(a) to (d) shall be referred to as a ‘recipient’.

(3) Where a dispute arises as to the confidentiality of information or a document given to a recipient, the recipient whom the central or local management has entrusted with such information or document on terms requiring it to be held in confidence, may refer the dispute to the Industrial Tribunal for a decision as to whether it was reasonable for the management to require the recipient to hold the information or document in confidence.

(4) If the Industrial Tribunal considers that the disclosure of the information or the document by the recipient would not, or would not be likely to, prejudice or cause serious harm to the undertaking concerned, it shall make a declaration that it was not reasonable for the management to require the recipient to hold the information or document in confidence.

(5) If a declaration is made under sub-regulation (4), the information or document shall not at any time thereafter be regarded as having been entrusted to the recipient who made the application under sub-regulation (3), or to any other recipient, on terms requiring it to be held in confidence.

(6) The central or local management is not required to disclose any information or document to a recipient when the nature of the information or document is such that, according to objective criteria, the disclosure of the information or document would seriously harm the functioning of, or would be prejudicial to the undertaking concerned.

(7) Where there is a dispute between the central or local management and a recipient as to whether the nature of the information or document which the competent organ has failed to provide is such as is described in sub-regulation (6), the management or a recipient may refer the dispute to the Industrial Tribunal for a decision as to whether the information or document is of such a nature.

(8) If the Industrial Tribunal decides that the disclosure of the information or document in question would not, according to objective criteria, seriously harm the functioning of, or be prejudicial to, the undertaking concerned, the Industrial Tribunal shall order the management to disclose the information or document, and the order shall specify:

(a) the information or document to be disclosed;

(b) the recipient or recipients to whom the information or document is to be disclosed;

(c) any terms on which the information or document is to be disclosed; and

(d) the date before which the information or document is to be disclosed.