Complaint Committee SAP

Complaint Committee SAP

Purpose of the Complaint Committee SAP

(as on Jan. 1st, 2011)

The Complaint Committee SAP is in charge of processing the 2nd level of the Complaint Procedure of the Inspection Service SAP. Its task is to make sure, on demand, wether the Inspection Service SAP performs its duties according to the underlying guidelines, evaluation criteria, checklists and other instructions, and thereby in the sense of the Swiss Animal Protection SAP and/or its contracting clients. Accordingly, leading representatives of the Swiss Animal Protection SAP as well as of its direct clients are present in this board.

Composition of the Complaint Committee SAP

  • Head of Technical Division SAP: The Head of Technical Division SAP is always a member of the Complaint Committee SAP. He is the chairman of the committee and has one voting right in elections and votings, with the power of the deciding vote in the case of a draw in these.
  • Representative of the Governing Board SAP: The governing board of the SAP delegates one of its members as a representative in the Complaint Committee SAP. The representative of the Governing Board SAP has one voting right in elections and votings.
  • Representative of the Client Contractor. Each contracting client for whom the Inspection Service SAP performs inspections/controls or audits, delegates a representative to the Complaint Committee SAP.
    During a specific complaint procedure, the representatives of the clients ordereing the criticised assignment take part in the appeal procedure, each of them having one voting right in the decisions.
  • External Specialist Assessor: For each field of work (animal husbandry inspections, animal transportation controls, abattoir audits) an external specialist is appointed as assessor. Nominations on the person can be proposed by all members of the Complaint Committee SAP, by the CEO Inspection Service SAP and by branch representatives. The external assessor is elected or dismissed respectively by all contracting clients, the representative of the Governing Board SAP and the Head of Technical Division SAP. Election or dismiss happen by simple majority, with the chairman having the right of the deciding vote.  The election is valid if at least 2/3 of all of the above listed representatives cast a vote, with abstentions counting as participating votes. The external assessors are integrated into the SAP's system by the signing of a contract. They are compensated for their work according to the expenses rules of the Swiss Animal Protection SAP currently in use. The external specialist assessors have one right of vote in votings.
  • Secretary: The secretary is appointed by the SAP. The secretary is responsible  for the efficient processing of appeals and for the administrational work of the Complaint Committee SAP. The secretary has no right of vote.

Responabilities of Members of the Complaint Committee SAP

The members of the complaint committee,  by participating in the board of the Complaint Committee SAP, are obliged to comply with the given rules and processes of the appeal procedure.

They commit themselves in particular to the following principles:

  • Animal welfare and the credibility of the Inspection Service SAP's work for the public and the consumers are fundamentals of the appeal procedure and the Complaint Committee SAP's operations.
  • The decision making during an appeal procedure and the evaluation of appeal items must be highly objective and in accordance with the requirements underlying the corresponding inspection/control.
  • Members must voluntarily step down from their appointment if, in a given appeal procedure, a person or company which could influence their ability of impartial  decision making, due to conflicts of interest or prejudice, is involved.
  • They have free access to all of the Inspection Service SAP's information relevant for a specific appeal decision: QM instructions currently in use, contracts, control/inspection documentation, media etc.
  • They are obliged to confidentiality towards third parties.

Duties and Proceedings

The proceedings of the appeal procedure and the duties of the Complaint Committee SAP are explained in the chapter "Beschwerdeverfahren Kontrolldienst STS" in the QM instructions.

Resources and Documents

On request of the Complaint Committee SAP, the Inspection Service SAP develops means and templates to document and standardize the appeal procedure and cares for their integration into the QM instructions.

Complaint Procedure