Our Equal Opportunities Policy

Cogworks is committed to equal opportunities in all its employment practices, policies and procedures including recruitment, training, remuneration and promotion and equal terms and conditions of employment. It is committed to the creation of a non-discriminatory working environment.

The aim of this policy is to ensure that no job applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment due to age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, unrelated criminal convictions, or membership or non membership of a trade union.

All employees have a responsibility to co-operate with measures to ensure equal opportunity and non discrimination; and to respect and act in accordance with the policy set out below. The Manager with ultimate responsibility for this policy is Dan Ashton.

Cogworks will not condone any form of harassment or bullying, whether engaged in by employees or by outside third parties who do business with Cogworks.

You should be aware that whilst an employer can be held liable in law for acts of discrimination committed by employees, individual employees can also be held personally liable in law for acts of discrimination that they commit, authorise, contribute to or condone.

Every employee is responsible for ensuring Cogworks’s Equal Opportunity Policy is applied to our dealings with our colleagues, clients and suppliers and should, in addition, be aware that it is unlawful to commit, authorise, contribute to or condone acts of discrimination in the provision of goods and services, on the grounds set out above.

You should therefore be aware that the following acts are unlawful and would constitute misconduct or gross misconduct liable to disciplinary action, which may include summary dismissal:

Discriminating in the course of employment or prospective employment against fellow or future employees in job, transfer or promotion applications on the grounds established in this Equal Opportunities Policy

Inducing or attempting to induce employees to practice unlawful discrimination

Indulging in verbal or physical harassment of a nature that is known, or should be known, to be offensive to the victim

Victimising individuals who have made or supported allegations or complaints/grievances of any discrimination or harassment or provided information about such discrimination or harassment, or are suspected of doing so

The following are the forms of discrimination that may give rise to a complaint and for which disciplinary action will be taken:

Direct Discrimination

Treating a person less favourably than a person without that protected characteristic (such as age, race sex etc) would be treated. This also applies where the individual is thought to have that characteristic (perceived discrimination) or because they associate with someone who has a protected characteristic (associative discrimination).

Indirect Discrimination

Where a practice or criterion applies to everyone but significantly disadvantages people who share a protected characteristic.

Victimisation

One person treating another person less favourably than they would treat other people because that person has made or supported a complaint or raised a grievance under the Act, or because they are suspected of doing so.

Harassment

For a reason relating to a person’s age, race, sex (including gender reassignment), disability, religion/belief or sexual orientation another person engages in unwanted conduct which may violate the person’s dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile or degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that person, even if it is not directed at them (see below “Problems of Bullying and Harassment”).

If you perceive a problem on recruitment, selection, training, promotion or the application of terms and conditions of employment you should raise it in the first instance with your Manager, or another manager of appropriate seniority.

All cases of such behaviour will be investigated and we will treat all complaints fairly, quickly and with confidentiality. Any grievance arising from the Equal Opportunities Policy will be dealt with using the existing Grievance Procedure.

Any employee, who has taken action, in good faith, over allegations of discrimination or harassment (see 5.4, Problems of Bullying & Harassment), will not be victimised by being treated any less favourably than any other employee as a consequence of taking such action.