Policies

POLICIES

Content:

  • Pegbox Code of Business Ethics
  • Modern Slavery Policy
  • Anti-bribery / corruption policy
  • Equal opportunities and diversity policy
  • Environmental policy

 

In this policies, “we”, ‘us”, and “the Company” mean Pegbox Limited and Pegbox INT Ltd

All our policies are openly available and were reaffirmed on 02/08/2021 after being agreed by our board of directors.

 

PEGBOX CODE OF BUSINESS ETHICS

The Company prides itself on carrying out all its professional activities in a way which promotes honesty, transparency, integrity, social responsibility and the full respect of others.

The Company therefore expects its suppliers to observe the highest ethical principles in their professional conduct and to set the highest benchmarks.

As such, all our suppliers must adhere to the following code of conduct in all their activities:

All suppliers must:

  • Comply as well as respect the spirit with all relevant legislation
  • Treat people with respect and integrity at all times
  • Demonstrate diversity with working practices designed to safeguard against unlawful or unethical discrimination
  • Act honestly in all dealings with full transparency and no misrepresentations or exaggerations
  • Explicitly and fully disclose all fees and charges as well as define the full scope and limitations of services provided
  • Promote safe working environments in all its forms and meanings
  • Promote and work towards the most environmentally friendly working practices
  • Respect for prompt and accurate payment of all its suppliers, staff including any workers engaged as part of their services
  • Maintain the highest principles for confidentiality and privacy
  • Promote similar or improved standards with their own suppliers

 

MODERN SLAVERY POLICY

The Company is committed to eliminating modern slavery, human trafficking, forced labour, and similar human rights abuses.

The Company is committed to ensuring that its staff and any workers it supplies (directly or indirectly) are not subject to behaviour or threats that may amount to modern slavery, human trafficking, forced labour, and similar human rights abuses.

The Company provides appropriate training and awareness information for all of its staff.
In particular:

All of our staff receive awareness-raising information around issues involving modern slavery and human trafficking, so that they can bring any concerns they have to the attention of management.

Any staff, workers or other parties are strongly encouraged to report any concerns or suspicions that they might have directly to our directors .

Reports surrounding these issues are taken extremely seriously by our directors, who are committed to ensuring that all investigations shall be prompt and effective. If our investigations reveal any issues, we are committed to taking appropriate action, including but not limited to:

  • Working with the appropriate organisations to improve standards,
  • Removing that organisation from our preferred supplier list,
  • Passing details to appropriate law enforcement bodies.
  • We regularly monitor our risks in this area through the use of relevant key performance indicators, including:
  • The percentage of suppliers who sign up to an appropriate code / provide their own modern slavery
  • statements,
  • As part of our efforts in this area, we are committed to review and where required publish a modern slavery statement on an annual basis.

 

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES AND DIVERSITY POLICY

Our policy

The Company embraces diversity and aims to promote the benefits of diversity in all of our business activities. We seek to develop a business culture that reflects that belief. We will expand the media in which we recruit to in order to ensure that we have a diverse employee and candidate base. We will also strive to ensure that our clients meet their own diversity targets.

The Company is committed to diversity and will promote diversity for all employees, workers and applicants. We will continuously review all aspects of recruitment to avoid unlawful discrimination. The Company will treat everyone equally and will not discriminate on the grounds of an individual’s “protected characteristic” under the Equality Act 2010 (the Act) which are age, disability, gender re-assignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. We will not discriminate on the grounds of an individual’s membership or non-membership of a Trade Union. All staff have an obligation to respect and comply with this policy. The Company is committed to providing training for its entire staff in equal opportunities and diversity. The Company will avoid stipulating unnecessary requirements which will exclude a higher proportion of a particular group of people and will not prescribe discriminatory requirements for a role.

The Company will not discriminate unlawfully when deciding which candidate/temporary worker is submitted for a vacancy or assignment, or in any terms of employment or terms of engagement for temporary workers. The Company will ensure that each candidate is assessed in accordance with the candidate’s merits, qualifications and ability to perform the relevant duties for the role.

Discrimination

Under the Act unlawful discrimination occurs in the following circumstances:

Direct discrimination

Direct discrimination occurs when an individual is treated less favourably because of a protected characteristic. Treating someone less favourably means treating them badly in comparison to others that do not have that protected characteristic.

It is unlawful for a recruitment consultancy to discriminate against a person on the grounds of a protected characteristic:

  • in the terms on which the recruitment consultancy offers to provide any of its services;
  • by refusing or deliberately omitting to provide any of its services;
  • in the way it provides any of its services.

Direct discrimination can take place even if the individual does not have the protected characteristic but is treated less favourably because it is assumed he or she has the protected characteristic or is associated with someone that has the protected characteristic.

Direct discrimination would also occur if a recruitment consultancy accepted and acted upon instructions from an employer which states that certain persons are unacceptable due to a protected characteristic, unless an exception applies. The Act contains provisions that permit specifying a requirement that an individual must have a particular protected characteristic in order to undertake a job. These provisions are referred to as occupational requirements.

Where there is an occupational requirement then the client must show that applying the requirement is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim, i.e. the employer must be able to objectively justify applying the requirement. An occupational requirement does not allow an employer to employ someone on less favourable terms or to subject a person to any other detriment. Neither does an occupational requirement provide an excuse against harassment or victimisation of someone who does not have the occupational requirement.

Indirect discrimination 

Indirect discrimination occurs when a provision, criterion or practice (PCP) is applied but this results in people who share a protected characteristic being placed at a disadvantage in comparison to those who do not have the protected characteristic. If the PCP can be objectively justified it will not amount to discrimination.

Indirect discrimination would also occur if a recruitment consultant accepted and acted upon an indirectly discriminatory instruction from an employer.

If the vacancy requires characteristics which amount to an occupational requirement or the instruction is discriminatory but there is an objective justification, The Company will not proceed with the vacancy unless the client provides written confirmation of the occupational requirement, exception or justification.

The Company will use best endeavours to comply with the Act and will not accept instructions from clients that will result in unlawful discrimination.

Harassment  

Under the Act, harassment is defined as unwanted conduct that relates to a protected characteristic which has the purpose or effect of violating an individual’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that individual. This includes unwanted conduct of a sexual nature.

The Company is committed to providing a work environment free from unlawful harassment.

The Company will ensure that the consultants do not harass any individual.

Examples of prohibited harassment are:

1. verbal or written conduct containing derogatory jokes or comments;
2. slurs or unwanted sexual advances;
3. visual conduct such as derogatory or sexually orientated posters;
4. photographs, cartoons, drawings or gestures which some may find offensive;
5. physical conduct such as assault, unwanted touching, or any interference because of sex, race or any other protected characteristic basis;
6. threats and demands to submit to sexual requests as a condition of continued employment or to avoid some other loss, and offers of employment benefits in return for sexual favours;
7. retaliation for having reported or threatened to report harassment.

If an individual believes that they have been unlawfully harassed, they should make an immediate   report to the directors followed by a written complaint as soon as possible after the incident. The details of the complaint should include:

  • Details of the incident
  • Name(s) of the individual(s) involved
  • Name(s) of any witness(es)

The Company will undertake a thorough investigation of the allegations. If it is concluded that harassment has occurred, remedial action will be taken.

All employees and workers will be expected to comply with The Company’s policy on harassment in the workplace. Any breach of such a policy will lead to the appropriate disciplinary action.

Any individual who The Company finds to be responsible for harassment will be subject to the disciplinary procedure and the sanction may include termination. [see Note 1]

Victimisation 

Under the Act victimisation occurs when an individual is treated unfavourably because he/she has done a ‘protected act’ which is bringing a claim for unlawful discrimination or raising a grievance about discrimination or giving evidence in respect of a complaint about discrimination.

The Company will ensure that the consultants do not victimise any individual.

Disabled persons

Discrimination occurs when a person is treated unfavourably as a result of their disability.

In direct discrimination occurs where a provision, criterion or practice is applied by or on behalf of an employer, or any physical feature of the employer’s premises, places a disabled person at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with persons who are not disabled.

In recruitment and selection there may be a requirement to make reasonable adjustments. For example, it might be necessary to have different application procedures for partially sighted or blind applicants that enable them to use Braille. With testing and assessment methods and procedures, tests can only be justified if they are directly related to the skills and competencies required for the job. Even then, it might be appropriate to have different levels of acceptable test results, depending on the disability. For example, an applicant with a learning disability might need more time to complete a test, or not be expected to reach the same standard as other non-disabled applicants.

Reasonable adjustments in recruiting could include:

  • modifying testing and assessment procedures;
  • meeting the candidate at alternative premises which are more easily accessible;
  • having flexibility in the timing of interviews;
  • modifying application procedures and application forms;
  • providing a reader or interpreter.

Wherever possible The Company will make reasonable adjustments to hallways, passages and doors in order to provide and improve means of access for disabled employees and workers. However, this may not always be feasible, due to circumstances creating such difficulties as to render such adjustments as being beyond what is reasonable in all the circumstances.

The Company will not discriminate against a disabled person:

  • in the arrangements i.e. application form, interview or arrangements for selection for determining whom a job should be offered; or
  • in the terms on which employment or engagement of temporary workers is offered; or
  • by refusing to offer, or deliberately not offering the disabled person a job for reasons connected with their disability; or
  • in the opportunities afforded to the person for receiving any benefit, or by refusing to afford, or deliberately not affording him or her any such opportunity; or
  • by subjecting the individual to any other detriment (detriment will include refusal of training or transfer, demotion, reduction of wage, or harassment).

The Company will make career opportunities available to all people with disabilities and every practical effort will be made to provide for the needs of staff, candidates and clients.

Age discrimination 

Under the Act, it is unlawful to directly or indirectly discriminate against or to harass or victimise a person because of age.  Age discrimination does not just provide protection for people who are older or younger. People of all ages are protected.

A reference to age is a reference to a person’s age group. People who share the protected characteristic of age are people who are in the same age group.

Age group can have various references:

Under 21s

People in their 40s

Adults

The Company will not discriminate directly or indirectly, harass or victimise any person on the grounds of their age. We will encourage clients not to include any age criteria in job specifications and every attempt will be made to encourage clients to recruit on the basis of competence and skills and not age.

The Company is committed to recruiting and retaining employees whose skills, experience, and attitude are suitable for the requirements of the various positions regardless of age. No age requirements will be stated in any job advertisements on behalf of the company.

If The Company requests age as part of its recruitment process such information will not be used as selection, training or promotion criteria or in any detrimental way and is only for compilation of personal data, which the company holds on all employees and workers and as part of its equal opportunities monitoring process. In addition if under age 22 to adhere to Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Business Regulations 2003 and other relevant legislation applicable to children or young candidates.

Where a client requests age or date of birth, this will have to be under an occupational requirement or with an objective justification which should be confirmed in writing.

Part-time workers

This policy also covers the treatment of those employees and workers who work on a part-time basis, The Company recognises that it is an essential part of this policy that part time employees are treated on the same terms, with no detriment, as full time employees (albeit on a pro rata basis) in matters such as rates of pay, holiday entitlement, maternity leave, parental and domestic incident leave and access to our pension scheme. The Company also recognises that part time employees must be treated the same as full time employees in relation to training and redundancy situations.

Gender reassignment policy 

The Company recognises that any employee or worker may wish to change their gender during the course of their employment with the Company.

The Company will support any employee or worker through the reassignment.

The Company will make every effort to try to protect an employee or worker who has undergone, is undergoing or intends to undergo gender reassignment, from discrimination or harassment within the workplace.

Any employee or worker suffering discrimination on the grounds of gender reassignment should have recourse to the Company’s grievance procedure.

Complaints and monitoring procedures  

The Company has in place procedures for monitoring compliance with this policy and for dealing with complaints of discrimination. These are available from the directors and will be made available immediately upon request.  Any discrimination complaint will be investigated fully.

Environmental Policy

The Company recognises and understands the importance of protecting the environment in which we operate. We are fully committed to minimising the impact that running our business has on the environment and we encourage our clients, suppliers and other stakeholders to do the same.

The Company is aware that any business activities have environmental impacts and we will comply with all relevant legislative, regulatory and other environmental requirements in order to act in a socially responsible manner and we will strive to continuously improve our environmental performance.

Even though the Company’s environmental impact is relatively small, we will aim to:

1. Minimise the use paper by continuing to use electronic signature documents;
2. Minimise the generation of waste and promote recycling;
3. Ensure no unnecessary documents or emails are held on our servers
4. Consider the environmental impact of any business decisions made;
5. Encourage feedback from staff on improvements and feed these into the policy;
6. Continually improve and monitor the environmental performance of the company and report these to interested parties.

The board of director will be responsible for implementing the above objectives, reviewing progress and continuously updating this policy as necessary.

All our policies are openly available and were reaffirmed on 08/03/2024 after being agreed by our board of directors.