must a foundation or association also have a reporting channel

Foundations and associations also count

Yes, the reporting obligation applies to foundations and associations in exactly the same way as to a private limited company or public limited company. The Whistleblower Protection Act makes no distinction based on legal form: it concerns organisations that act as employers, regardless of whether that is a foundation, association, cooperative, sole proprietorship or capital company. What matters is not how the organisation is legally structured, but how many people work there.

For a foundation or association, the same question is therefore relevant as for any other business: is the organisation at or above the threshold where an internal reporting channel becomes mandatory? From how many employees a reporting channel is mandatory is described on that page, and for foundations with many volunteers, seconded employees or casual workers alongside a small core of permanent staff, it is also good to look at who counts towards that threshold. A foundation with a limited number of permanent staff but a large group of flexible or hired workers will namely reach the required number sooner than appears at first glance.

Where this comes from: the directive and the Whistleblower Protection Act

The underlying European directive, Article 8 of Directive (EU) 2019/1937, requires 'legal entities in the private and public sector' to establish internal reporting channels, without mentioning a specific legal form. The Dutch implementation in Article 2 of the Whistleblower Protection Act aligns with this and refers to employers in general. The House for Whistleblowers confirms in the information for employers that the obligation is linked to the number of employees and not to the nature of the organisation, so that foundations, associations and other non-profit forms are treated on an equal footing with commercial enterprises.