Whyte & Co

Whyte & Co positively supports and aims to support the diversity of the whole community.

Whyte & Co is committed to providing a working environment in which employees are able to realise their full potential and to contribute to its business success irrespective of their gender, race, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, part time status, age, religion or belief. Whyte & Co values the differences that a diverse workforce brings. This is a key employment value to which all employees are expected to give their support.

Whyte & Co is committed to identifying and eliminating unlawful discriminatory practices, procedures and attitudes throughout the company. Whyte & Co expects employees to support this commitment and to assist in its realisation in all possible ways.

Specifically, Whyte & Co aims to ensure that no employee or candidate is subject to unlawful discrimination, either directly or indirectly, on the grounds of gender, race (including colour, nationality or ethnic origin), disability, sexual orientation, marital status, part time status, age, religion or belief.

This policy applies equally to:

recruitment and selection, including advertisements, job descriptions, interview and selection procedures;
training;
promotion and career development opportunities;
terms and conditions of employment, and access to employment related benefits and facilities;
grievance handling and the application of disciplinary procedures; and
selection for redundancy
Service provision
Commissioning and purchasing of goods and services
Partnership with other organisations

Equal opportunities practice is developing constantly as social attitudes and legislation change. Whyte & Co will keep its policies under review and will implement changes where these could improve equality of opportunity. This commitment applies to all the company's employment policies and procedures, not just those specifically connected with equal opportunities and diversity.

Harassment

Harassment is physical, verbal or non verbal behaviour which is unwanted and personally offensive to the recipient, and which causes the recipient to feel threatened, humiliated, intimidated, patronised, denigrated, bullied, distressed or harassed.

The way in which Complaints of Unlawful Discrimination and Harassment will be handled

Discrimination and harassment are often complex matters, and there is no single way of dealing with every suspected or alleged instance. In some cases employees may be able to deal satisfactorily with an issue by raising it with their immediate manager.

If an employee wishes to make a formal complaint he or she should use Whyte & Co's Grievance Procedure which is set out in the Employee Handbook.

Whyte & Co will treat seriously all allegations of unlawful discrimination or harassment.

If an Employee is Accused of Unlawful Discrimination or Harassment

If an employee is accused of unlawful discrimination or harassment, Whyte & Co will investigate the matter fully.

In the course of the investigation the employee will be given the opportunity to respond to the allegation and provide an explanation of his or her actions.

If Whyte & Co concludes that no unlawful discrimination or harassment has occurred, this will be the end of the matter.

If Whyte & Co concludes that the claim is false or malicious the complainant may be subject to disciplinary action.

If on the other hand Whyte & Co concludes that the employee's actions amount to unlawful discrimination or harassment he or she may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including summary dismissal for gross misconduct.

Employment and Training

As an employer, Whyte & Co will treat all employees and job candidates equally and fairly and not discriminate unjustifiably against them. This will, for example, include arrangements for recruitment and selection, terms and conditions of employment, access to training opportunities, access to promotion and transfers, grievance and disciplinary processes, demotions, selection for redundancies, dress code, references, bonus schemes, work allocation and any other employment-related activities.

Service Delivery

Whyte & Co will:

Ensure adequate funds are made available to take into account equality considerations

Ensure that equality considerations are integrated into all relevant areas of mainstream service planning, delivery and management

Ensure Whyte & Co's services are accessible and are delivered sensitively and appropriately in order to facilitate equality of service and that they are free from discrimination, harassment and victimisation. Whyte & Co's website is being amended to include FAQ's in a variety of languages.

Ensure that every individual is treated with respect and provided with accurate and up to date information

Ensure that everyone has the right to give feedback or raise complaints about services through clear and easy to use complaints procedures

Ensure our commissioning and purchasing policies and procedures promote equality of opportunity

Recruitment and Selection

Whyte & Co recognises the benefits of having a diverse workforce and will take steps to ensure that:

it endeavours to recruit from the widest pool of qualified candidates possible;
All advertising material and accompanying literature relating to employment and training will be reviewed regularly to ensure that it avoids presenting any person in a stereotypical role.
Any qualifications or requirements applied to a job which effectively inhibit applications from one group of people, should only be retained if they are justified in terms of the job to be done
Staff responsible for short listing and interviewing candidates will be aware of the selection criteria and the need for consistent application.
All applications shall be processed in exactly the same way. All those handling applications and conducting interviews shall be trained in the avoidance of unlawful discrimination and records of interviews kept, where practicable, showing why applicants were or were not appointed.
Ensure that short listing and interviewing is not done by only one person and checked by a senior member of staff.
Individuals shall be assessed according to their personal capability to carry out a given job
Monitor recruitment, promotion, training opportunities and take-up, grievances, disciplinary procedures and exit interviews.
employment opportunities are open and accessible to all on the basis of their individual qualities and personal merit;
where appropriate, positive action measures are taken to attract applications from all sections of society and especially from those groups which are underrepresented in the workforce;
selection criteria and processes do not discriminate unjustifiably on the grounds of gender, race (including colour, nationality or ethnic origin), disability, sexual orientation, marital status, part time status, age, religion or belief, other than in those instances where Whyte & Co is exercising lawfully permitted positive action;
all recruitment agencies acting for Whyte & Co are aware of its requirement not to discriminate and to act accordingly.

Recruitment of Ex-offenders

As an organisation using the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) service to assess candidates' suitability for positions of trust, Whyte & Co complies fully with the CRB Code of Practice and undertakes to treat all candidates fairly. Whyte & Co undertakes not to discriminate unlawfully against any candidate who is required to provide information through this process. The information provided is known as a Disclosure.
Whyte & Co's policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders will be made available to all candidates at the outset of the recruitment process.
Whyte & Co actively promotes equality of opportunity for all with the right mix of talent, skills and potential and welcomes applications from a wide range of candidates, including those with criminal records. Having a criminal record will not necessarily prevent the candidate from working with Whyte & Co. Whether or not it does will depend on the nature of the position the employee is applying for and the circumstances and background of the offences.
A Disclosure is only requested after a thorough risk assessment has indicated that one is both proportionate and relevant to the position concerned. For those positions where such a check is required, all application forms, job advertisement and recruitment briefs will contain a statement that a Disclosure will be requested in the event of the individual being offered the position.
Where a Disclosure is part of the recruitment process, Whyte & Co encourages all candidates called for interview to provide details of any criminal record at an early stage in the application process. Whyte & Co requests that this information is sent under separate, confidential cover to a designated person within Whyte & Co. Whyte & Co guarantees that only those who need to see it as part of the recruitment process will see this information.
Unless the nature of the position is such that Whyte & Co may ask questions about an individual's entire criminal record, Whyte & Co will only ask about "unspent" convictions as defined in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
Whyte & Co will ensure that all individuals involved in the recruitment process receive appropriate guidance and training in the legislation relating to the employment of ex-offenders, e.g., the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
Whyte & Co will ensure that it discusses with the candidate the relevance of any offence to the job in question. A candidate's failure to reveal information directly relevant to the job could result in withdrawal of an offer of employment.
Whyte & Co will ensure that it makes any candidate who is subject to Disclosure aware of the CRB Code of Practice and will provide a copy of the Code on request.
Whyte & Co undertakes to discuss any matter revealed in the Disclosure with the candidate before withdrawing the offer of employment.

Conditions of Service

Whyte & Co will treat all employees equally and create a working environment which is free from discrimination and harassment and which respects, where appropriate, the diverse backgrounds and beliefs of employees.

Terms and conditions of service for employees will comply with U.K. equal opportunities legislation.

The provision of benefits such as working hours, maternity and other leave arrangements, performance appraisal systems, dress code, bonus schemes and any other conditions of employment will not discriminate unlawfully against any employee on the grounds of their gender, race (including colour, nationality or ethnic origin), disability, sexual orientation, marital status, part time status, age, religion or belief.

Where appropriate and necessary, Whyte & Co will endeavour to provide appropriate facilities and conditions of service which take into account the specific needs of employees which arise from their gender, ethnic or cultural background, nationality, responsibilities as parents or carers, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, part time status, age, religion or belief.

Promotion and Career Development

Promotion within Whyte & Co will be made without reference to any of the forbidden grounds and will be based solely on merit.

The selection criteria and processes for recruitment and promotion will be kept under review to ensure that there is no unjustifiably discriminatory impact on any particular group.

All employees will have equal access to training and other career development opportunities appropriate to their experience and abilities. However, Whyte & Co will take appropriate positive action measures (as permitted by the equal opportunities legislation) to provide special training and support for groups which are underrepresented in the workforce and encourage them to take up training and career development opportunities.

Promoting Equality and Diversity

Whyte & Co is committed to promoting equality and diversity as well as in those areas in which it has influence.

Employees will be trained on this Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy and will be provided with equality and diversity training appropriate to their needs responsibilities.

All those who act on Whyte & Co's behalf will be trained on Whyte & Co's Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy and will be expected to pay due regard to it when conducting business on Whyte & Co's behalf.

In all its dealings, including those with clients, debtors, suppliers, contractors recruitment agencies and the public, Whyte & Co will seek to promote the principles of equality and diversity.

Whyte & Co will make every effort to reflect its commitment to equality and diversity in its marketing and communication activities.

Implementing the Policy

Responsibility

The partners have overall responsibility for the policy and ensuring that adequate resources are provided for its implementation.

Partners of Whyte & Co will be responsible for ensuring this policy is fully effective and will not condone any deviation by its employees.

The management team has responsibility for overseeing implementation of the policy and monitoring its progress

Supervisors are responsible for ensuring that all aspects of their service comply with the policy

All employees should help promote the policy in the workplace in all aspects of service delivery and to work towards the elimination of discrimination

All employees of Whyte & Co are expected to pay due regard to the provisions of the Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy and are responsible for ensuring compliance with it when undertaking their jobs or representing Whyte & Co.

All employees have a responsibility to report instances of discrimination to their manager immediately so that appropriate action can be taken to remedy the situation

Acts of discrimination or harassment by employees of Whyte & Co will result in disciplinary action. Failure to comply with this policy will be treated in a similar fashion.

Complaints of Discrimination

Whyte & Co will treat seriously, and will take action where appropriate concerning, all complaints of discrimination or harassment on any of the forbidden grounds made by employees, clients, debtors, suppliers, contractors or other third parties.
All complaints will be investigated in accordance with Whyte & Co's grievance or complaints procedure, as appropriate, and the complainant will be informed of the outcome.

Policy Distribution

The policy will become part of each employee's handbook and a copy will be placed on the Company website.
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The policy will be included in the Induction process of all new employees

The policy will be available on the 'shared drive' of the company computer system for all staff to view

For this document on tape please contact Whyte & Co on 0845 458 9429

Monitoring

Whyte & Co will not tolerate unlawful discrimination or harassment of any kind in the working environment and will take positive action to prevent its occurrence.

In this connection Whyte & Co will monitor its policies and will implement changes in order to improve them as social attitudes and legislation change. This commitment applies to all Whyte & Co's employment policies and procedures, not just those specifically concerned with equal opportunities and diversity.

Whyte & Co long term aim is that the composition of our workforce should reflect that of the community. At the present time the Partners of Whyte & Co do not consider that any formal monitoring system is required due to the same size of the company. However, this position will be kept under review as the Company grows.

Nevertheless, the Company makes comparison of the composition of its workforce compared to the composition of Sevenoaks District Council residents as this is where our offices are situated and where a large majority of employees reside.