A very important regulation was issues in 2014 by the European Union on the mandatory reporting and analysis of occurrences.

See Regulation 376/2014 - Reporting, Analysis and Follow-Up of Occurrences in Civil Aviation

Of special note is the text in Article 15 and 16, that is used for describing a Just Culture. Take special notice of Article 16, sub 10! That is where 'non-tolearable behaviour' is described as:

*(a) in cases of wilful misconduct; *(b) where there has been a manifest, severe and serious disregard of an obvious risk and profound failure of professional responsibility to take such care as is evidently required in the circumstances, causing foreseeable damage to a person or property, or which seriously compromises the level of aviation safety.

Article 15

Confidentiality and appropriate use of information

1. Member States and organisations, in accordance with their national law, and the Agency shall take the necessary measures to ensure the appropriate confidentiality of the details of occurrences received by them pursuant to Articles 4, 5 and 10. Each Member State, each organisation established in a Member State, or the Agency shall process personal data only to the extent necessary for the purposes of this Regulation and without prejudice to national legal acts implementing Directive 95/46/EC.

2. Without prejudice to the provisions relating to the protection of safety information in Articles 12, 14 and 15 of Regulation (EU) No 996/2010, information derived from occurrence reports shall be used only for the purpose for which it has been collected. Member States, the Agency and organisations shall not make available or use the information on occurrences:

• (a) in order to attribute blame or liability; or
• (b) for any purpose other than the maintenance or improvement of aviation safety.

3. The Commission, the Agency and the competent authorities of the Member States, when discharging their obligations under Article 14 in relation to the information contained in the European Central Repository, shall:

• (a) ensure the confidentiality of the information; and
• (b) limit the use of the information to what is strictly necessary in order to discharge their safety-related obligations without attributing blame or liability; in this respect, the information shall be used in particular for risk management and for analysis of safety trends which may lead to safety recommendations or actions, addressing actual or potential safety deficiencies.

4. Member States shall ensure that their competent authorities referred to in Article 6(3) and their competent authorities for the administration of justice cooperate with each other through advance administrative arrangements. These advance administrative arrangements shall seek to ensure the correct balance between the need for proper administration of justice, on the one hand, and the necessary continued availability of safety information, on the other.

Article 16

Protection of the information source

1. For the purposes of this Article, ‘personal details’ includes in particular names or addresses of natural persons.

2. Each organisation established in a Member State shall ensure that all personal details are made available to staff of that organisation other than persons designated in accordance with Article 6(1) only where absolutely necessary in order to investigate occurrences with a view to enhancing aviation safety. Disidentified information shall be disseminated within the organisation as appropriate.

3. Each Member State shall ensure that no personal details are ever recorded in the national database referred to in Article 6(6). Such disidentified information shall be made available to all relevant parties, for example to allow them to discharge their obligations in relation to aviation safety improvement.

4. The Agency shall ensure that no personal details are ever recorded in the Agency database referred to in Article 6(8). Such disidentified information shall be made available to all relevant parties, for example to allow them to discharge their obligations in relation to aviation safety improvement.

5. Member States and the Agency shall not be prevented from taking any action necessary for maintaining or improving aviation safety.

6. Without prejudice to applicable national criminal law, Member States shall refrain from instituting proceedings in respect of unpremeditated or inadvertent infringements of the law which come to their attention only because they have been reported pursuant to Articles 4 and 5. The first subparagraph shall not apply in the cases referred to in paragraph 10. Member States may retain or adopt measures to strengthen the protection of reporters or persons mentioned in occurrence reports. Member States may in particular apply this rule without the exceptions referred to in paragraph 10.

7. If disciplinary or administrative proceedings are instituted under national law, information contained in occurrence reports shall not be used against:

• (a) the reporters; or
• (b) the persons mentioned in occurrence reports.

The first subparagraph shall not apply in the cases referred to in paragraph 10. Member States may retain or adopt measures to strengthen the protection of reporters or persons mentioned in occurrence reports. Member States may in particular extend that protection to civil or criminal proceedings.

8. Member States may adopt or maintain in force legislative provisions ensuring a higher level of protection for reporters or for persons mentioned in occurrence reports than those established in this Regulation.

9. Except where paragraph 10 applies, employees and contracted personnel who report or are mentioned in occurrence reports collected in accordance with Articles 4 and 5 shall not be subject to any prejudice by their employer or by the organisation for which the services are provided on the basis of the information supplied by the reporter.

10. The protection under paragraphs 6, 7 and 9 of this Article shall not apply to any of the following situations:

• (a) in cases of wilful misconduct;
• (b) where there has been a manifest, severe and serious disregard of an obvious risk and profound failure of professional responsibility to take such care as is evidently required in the circumstances, causing foreseeable damage to a person or property, or which seriously compromises the level of aviation safety.

11. Each organisation established in a Member State shall, after consulting its staff representatives, adopt internal rules describing how ‘just culture’ principles, in particular the principle referred to in paragraph 9, are guaranteed and implemented within that organisation. The body designated pursuant to paragraph 12 may ask to review the internal rules of the organisations established in its Member State before those internal rules are implemented.

12. Each Member State shall designate a body responsible for the implementation of paragraphs 6, 9 and 11. Employees and contracted personnel may report to that body alleged infringements of the rules established by this Article. Employees and contracted personnel shall not be penalised for reporting alleged infringements. Employees and contracted personnel may inform the Commission about such alleged infringements. Where appropriate, the designated body shall advise the relevant authorities of its Member State concerning remedies or penalties in application of Article 21.

13. On 15 May 2019 and every five years thereafter, each Member State shall send the Commission a report on the application of this Article, and in particular on the activities of the body designated pursuant to paragraph 12. The report shall not contain any personal data.