Equal Opportunities Policy

Equality & Diversity Policy

1 Introduction

The Company is committed to ensuring equal opportunities, fairness of treatment, dignity, work-life balance and the elimination of all forms of discrimination in the workplace. The Company will avoid unlawful discrimination in all aspects of employment including recruitment, promotion, opportunities for training, pay and benefits, discipline and selection for redundancy.

The key objective is for the Company to provide a working environment in which people feel comfortable and confident that they will be treated with respect and dignity.

It is the policy of the Company to treat all job applicants and employees equally and fairly.

Although it is important to create a workplace which promotes fairness for all, the law focuses its protection on nine characteristics. The current protected characteristics are:

1. Age

2. Disability (which means someone with a physical or mental impairment which has a long-term and substantial adverse effect on their ability to carry-out normal day-to-day activities)

3. Gender reassignment (which covers any person who is proposing to undergo, is undergoing or has undergone a process for the purpose of reassigning their sex by changing physiological or other attributes of sex)

4. Marriage and civil partnership

5. Pregnancy and maternity

6. Race (incorporating colour, ethnic origin, national origin and nationality)

7. Religion or belief

8. Sex

9. Sexual orientation

The Company will appoint, train, develop and promote on the basis of merit using criteria and processes that avoid discrimination.

It is the Company’s policy to ensure that no policy, procedure, provision, rule, requirement, condition or criterion will be imposed on any worker or job applicant without justification if it would be likely to put that person at a disadvantage on any of the above grounds. This equality and diversity policy applies to all stages of the recruitment and selection process as well as throughout employment.

All employees will be required to undertake equality and diversity training.

2 What is equality and what is diversity?

‘Equality’ requires us, and you, to treat everyone equally and fairly, with equal opportunities and rights.

‘Diversity’ recognises that this world is full of differences. We should note, value and positively embrace these differences. It is important for differences to be recognised. But it is equally important that, whilst recognising them, each and every person does so positively, with the importance of equality at the forefront of their minds.

3 What are the different types of discrimination?

Generally, discrimination boils down to unfair treatment based on an actual or perceived protected characteristic. It can take several forms which are legally protected. The Company does not tolerate any form of discrimination. Sometimes, actions can be intentional and sometimes unintentional.

a Direct discrimination: this is when somebody is treated less favourably because of a protected characteristic than somebody else has been, or would have been, in identical circumstances.

b Indirect discrimination: this is when a group of people with one of the protected characteristics are put at a disadvantage by a provision, criterion or practice applied to all staff unless the treatment is justified for a good business reason.

c Harassment: this is when a hostile, humiliating, degrading, intimidating or similarly offensive environment is created in relation to a protected characteristic. We also consider it harassment for a worker to be subjected to uninvited conduct related to a protected characteristic which ‒ as an intended or unintended consequence ‒ violates their dignity. Examples of this are: name calling, lewd comments, excluding colleagues, making insensitive jokes and displaying pornographic material.

d Victimisation: in a legal context, ‘victimisation’ has a much more restricted meaning than in real life. It happens when a worker has complained about harassment or discrimination, or has supported a colleague in their complaint, and is then treated less favourably as a result.

There are other actions which can be unlawful under equal opportunities legislation which apply specifically to disability:

a Failure to make reasonable adjustments to minimise certain disadvantages suffered by a disabled employee (or job applicant).

b Treating someone less favourably because of something arising from their disability (rather than the disability itself) without a good reason which justifies that treatment.

4 How we carry out our responsibilities and duties

Everyone in the Company is essential to the success of this Policy. We all have a legal responsibility to comply with it, and any of us ‒ however senior or junior we are ‒ may be personally liable in an employment tribunal claim for unlawful discrimination if we breach terms of this Policy.

Everyone working at managerial and supervisory level is expected to act in full accordance with this Policy, lead by example, and attain and maintain appropriate standards of behaviour within the teams they manage.

The ethos and standards covered by this Policy can only be achieved and maintained if everyone cooperates fully and embraces the approach in this Policy. It is also important that you understand you have a legal responsibility to comply. If you breach this Policy, the Company may be liable for your actions, and we may both have to pay compensation to anyone who claims against us. We expect you to take personal responsibility for following this Policy’s aims and commitments and for drawing any actual or potential breaches to our attention.

5 Commitment to equal opportunities in recruitment, training and development

We will conduct recruitment, promotion, and other selection exercises, such as redundancy selection, on the basis of merit.

Training needs will be identified through regular appraisals which will be carried out in line with our Appraisal and Supervision Policy and Training Policy. We will not be influenced by any protected characteristics that you may have. You will be given appropriate access to training to enable you to progress within the Company, and all promotion decisions will be made on the basis of merit.

6 Advertisements

Recruitment publicity must positively encourage applications from all suitably qualified people. When advertising job vacancies, in order to attract applications from all sections of the community, the Company will, as far as reasonably practicable:

Ensure advertisements are not confined to those areas or publications which would exclude or disproportionately reduce the numbers of applicants from a particular group or protected characteristic.

Avoid prescribing any unnecessary requirements which would exclude a higher proportion of a particular group or protected characteristic;

Where vacancies may be filled by promotion or transfer, they will be published to all eligible employees in such a way that they do not restrict applications from employees of any particular group or protected characteristic.

7 Selection methods

The selection process will be carried out consistently for all jobs at all levels. The Company will ensure that this equal opportunities policy is available to all staff and in particular is given to all staff with responsibility for recruitment, selection and promotion.

The selection of new staff will be based on the job requirements and the individual's suitability and ability to do, or to train for the job in question. Person specifications and job descriptions will be limited to those requirements that are necessary for the effective performance of the job. Candidates for employment will be assessed objectively against the requirements for the job. With disabled job applicants, the Company will have regard to its duty to make reasonable adjustments to work provisions, criteria or practices or to work premises in order to ensure that the disabled person is not placed at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with persons who are not disabled.

8 Applications and interviewing

All applications will be processed in the same way. The staff responsible for short-listing, interviewing and selecting candidates will be clearly aware of the selection criteria and of the need for their consistent application.

All questions that are put to the applicants will relate to the requirements of the job.

9 Terms of Employment, Benefits, Facilities and Services

All terms of employment, benefits, facilities and services will be reviewed from time to time, in order to ensure that there is no unlawful discrimination on the grounds of any protected characteristics.

10 How we enforce this Policy and handle breaches

We will investigate any complaint or allegation you raise regarding a potential breach of this Policy. If you believe you have been harassed or discriminated against, you should contact your manager as soon as possible. If you want to take formal action, you will need to follow our grievance procedure which is set out in the staff handbook. Also see the Company’s Anti-Harassment Policy.

You will face disciplinary action if we find you have harassed or discriminated against anyone else, in breach of this Policy. Sometimes, this type of behaviour may amount to gross misconduct, in which case we may dismiss you without notice.

Occasionally, people make complaints in bad faith, knowing that they’re not true. People might do this to avoid or deflect disciplinary action or performance management. We view any complaint made in bad faith as an act of misconduct, and this will normally lead to disciplinary action. In some cases, bad faith complaints may lead to summary dismissal for gross misconduct.

11 How we monitor whether this Policy is working

We may record and analyse information about equal opportunities within the workplace, and when you join us, you give us consent to gather and process this data about you. We use the information to make sure this Policy works properly and to refine it. We may also use the information to review the composition of our workforce and to promote workplace equality. All data will be stored and processed in line with our [Data Protection Policy] and [Privacy Notice].

We will monitor the outcomes of any complaints raised under this Policy to note any patterns of behaviour and to assess the quality of investigations. We will use the information gathered to focus training, development and awareness needs appropriately.

12 Responsibility

Overall responsibility for this policy lies with Anthony Woolcott, Managing Director.