Krunić: Non-Disclosure Agreement drafted in accordance with standards aimed at protecting children and users

The contract, which the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIN-CG) presents as a means of putting pressure on employees, was drafted in accordance with standards, and its sole goal is to protect confidential data and practices, with the intention of protecting children and other users of the institution, said Srđan Krunić, director of the Public Institution Day Care Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities and Developmental Difficulties - Tivat.

He was reacting to the CIN-CG article titled "Director of the Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities and Developmental Disabilities in Tivat Obliged Workers to Disputable Contracts: A Lock on Their Mouths" published on the Vijesti portal on May 17, with the desire, as he said, to eliminate misinterpretations that attempt to present to the public that the goal of the Non-Disclosure Agreement is to conceal illegalities or prevent employees from reporting possible irregularities in the work of the Public Institution Day Care Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities and Developmental Disabilities - Tivat.

The director of the Day Care Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities and Developmental Difficulties in Seljanovo, Tivat (Day Care Center), Srđan Krunić, in September last year obliged employees to sign non-disclosure agreements (Agreement), which declare all data related to work at that institution to be secret.

Experts told CIN that these contracts are very problematic because they put employees in a situation where they are not allowed to report any suspicious events in the institution, warn experts for the Center for Investigative Reporting of Montenegro.

We transmit the reaction in its entirety:

"We would like to point out in particular that the proceedings mentioned in the text are not being conducted against the director as a natural person, but against the employer, that is, the Institution, which is why it is completely unfounded to personalize the entire case and place the director at the center of media reporting with the obvious intention of creating a negative image of him and the Institution in the public."

The Agreement, which is presented in the text as a means of pressure on employees, was drafted in accordance with the ISO 9001 Standards that are implemented in the operations of our Institution, and its goal is the protection of confidential data and practices solely with the intention of protecting children and other users of the Institution, their personal and other sensitive data. Contrary to the statements in the text, the Agreement does not refer to a ban on reporting illegalities, nor can it have such an effect.

The contract directly refers to the application of current Montenegrin regulations, and not to the arbitrary determination of what can be considered a secret, so it is clear that the intention of such reporting was to discredit the Institution and its management, and not to point out alleged problems within it.

In support of the above, the fact that the Contract itself explicitly stipulates that information that serves to conceal a criminal offense, abuse of authority, abuse of official position or any other illegal conduct cannot be considered a trade secret, as well as information that is prescribed by special laws as not being a trade secret, and that the engaged person may disclose information without the consent of the institution when required by law, when required by the competent authority, or when the information is already public, and accordingly, certain assessments and interpretations of experts presented in the text are selective and in complete contradiction with the content of the contract and its actual purpose.

As stated above, the provisions of the contract primarily relate to the protection of sensitive data on users, work methodology, documentation and other information that the institution is certainly obliged to protect by law and professional standards, especially considering that this is an institution that works with children and youth as the most sensitive category of society.

Also, the allegations that the Contract contains provisions that force employees to sign it and that in the event of failure to sign it, proceedings may be initiated against employees to determine the employee's liability, resulting in termination of employment, are incorrect, while the provision relating to the contractual penalty is in accordance with the positive regulations of Montenegro and does not in any way punish the employee, as is intended to be presented in the text.

We would like to point out that before publishing information about a certain event, phenomenon or person, a journalist is obliged to verify its origin, truthfulness and completeness with due journalistic care, and that any action to the contrary entails the liability of the founder, editor and journalist.

Ultimately, we emphasize that we regret that the content of the Agreement is being interpreted in a way that may create a false impression in the public and damage the reputation of the Institution, for which reason we dispute the allegations presented in the text with this response.

"The day care center remains consistent with its mission - providing quality care and support to children and young people with disabilities and developmental difficulties, as well as their families. We continue to work professionally, responsibly and in the best interests of our users," said Krunić.