Scope

Wisdom House has made the commitment to implement and maintain Equality of Opportunity and has committed to observe as far as possible the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Codes of Practice for Employment, Equal Pay, and Services, Public Functions and Associations. This document outlines the policy that must be strictly adhered to by every employee and will be regularly reviewed. All staff should be aware of this policy from their recruitment stage and all breaches of this policy will be investigated and, where appropriate, disciplinary procedures followed. This document and policy will be regularly reviewed by the *** , at least annually, unless any issues arise in the interim.

Introduction

• Equality.
• The Legislation
• The Equality Act 2010 and subsequent amendments forms the basis of this policy which defines protected characteristics as:
• • age
• • disability
• • gender
• • race
• • religion and belief
• • sex and sexual orientation
• • gender reassignment
• • pregnancy and maternity
• • marriage and civil partnership
• The main aims of the 2010 Act are to provide protection of the Protected Characteristics from the following prohibited conduct:
• • Direct discrimination
• • Indirect discrimination
• • Victimisation, and
• • Harassment
• The policy is intended to meet our general and specific duties under the Equality Act 2010. The general duty, which applies to all functions of the organisation, requires Wisdom House to have due regard to the need to:
• • Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the Act
• • Advance equality of opportunity between people who share protected characteristics and those who do not
• • Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not
• The policy is based on the principle that we will take a proactive approach to promoting equality in all its aspects.
• The legislation makes it clear that complying with the duty might mean treating some people more favourably than others, where doing so is permitted by the Act, such as taking positive action to promote equality, or making reasonable adjustments for disabled people
• Wisdom House makes it explicitly clear that victimisation, discrimination and harassment are disciplinary offences and will not be tolerated.
• Diversity.
• Wisdom House understands that diversity is a broader concept that builds upon the progress made through equal opportunities. We understand that everyone is different and diversity is about recognising, respecting and valuing the differences we each bring to work. Equal opportunities and diversity work together by addressing the inequalities and barriers faced by people in under-represented groups and by valuing, learning and benefiting from the diverse cultures in society, our staff and students.
• General Statement of Policy
• It is Wisdom House policy that no employee or prospective employee will receive less favourable treatment or is disadvantaged by any circumstances, conditions or requirements that cannot be justified.

The Policy

• The Policy Statement
• Wisdom House senior management recognises that people are discriminated against and will make every effort to ensure they will not unreasonably exclude any individual from access to any activities, goods, facilities or services, or any employment opportunities, that they offer. As an employer committed to equality and diversity in all its practices Wisdom House recognises that groups and individuals are discriminated against on the basis of age, gender, ethnic origin, race, nationality, colour of skin, sexuality, impairment (physical, sensory or learning), physical appearance, marital or other life status, religious or political belief and other differences that cannot be justified. Every employee is entitled to expect equality of opportunity in all aspects of their employment including its terms and conditions. Every potential employee is entitled to expect the recruitment process to be free of all unreasonable barriers. All employees and prospective employees of Wisdom House shall be made aware of this policy and its implications for them.
• What we Expect from our Employees
• Whilst the responsibility for creating and monitoring a culture of equality of opportunity rests with Wisdom House, its success relies on each employee playing their part. Employees have a number of responsibilities; many of which are directly related to their jobs, but the following are general instructions that apply to all our staff:
• Every employee shall comply with measures that are introduced to ensure equality of opportunity and non-discrimination.
• Training appropriate to each employee’s role will be provided.
• Those individuals responsible for other employees are not to discriminate when applying processes relating to the training, advancement, performance management, transfer, redeployment, discipline, retirement, dismissal or redundancy, benefits, facilities and services.
• No employee shall induce, or attempt to induce other employees or trade unions or management to discriminate.
• No employee shall victimise an individual on the grounds that they have made complaints or provided information about discrimination or harassment.
• No employee shall harass, abuse or intimidate another employee on any grounds.
• Those found to be in violation of the above through the use of victimisation, discrimination or harassment will face disciplinary procedures which could result in dismissal.
• Publicising and Advertising Vacancies
• All vacancies shall first be advertised internally in the first instance; if no internal candidate is appointed then the post shall be advertised externally. All recruitment material and processes, including advertisements will be available, or be offered, in a variety of media that reflects the basic requirements of the post. Use shall be made of local media, job centres and careers offices. Potential applicants shall be given clear and accurate information about posts through a job description and person specification that includes only requirements that are necessary and justifiable for the effective performance for the job. Advertisements in printed media shall adhere to clear print guidelines. All recruitment advertisements shall draw attention to our Equal Employment Opportunity Policy and that any applicant for a post who wishes to declare that they have a disability and who satisfies the job description and person specification will be offered an interview.
• Recruitment
• Recruitment practice and procedures shall be as open and as barrier free as possible. Application forms and other supporting material shall be free of personal questions or requests for information from which inferences could be drawn as to the status of an individual that are irrelevant to the job description. Selection criteria shall be kept under review to ensure that they are justifiable for the effective execution of the job. More than one person shall be involved in shortlisting and selection for interview, and all involved shall have received training in equality and diversity. Questions and selection tests shall relate to the requirements of the job and shall be carried out by staff trained in carrying out the tests and the assessment of results. No applicant shall be disadvantaged by an interview’s timing, location or facilities. Reasons for selection or rejection of applicants shall be recorded. All applications shall be subject to a confidential monitoring system. A statement to this effect shall appear in recruitment material and any advertisement.
• Training
• Wisdom House policy of equality extends to training; this covers its general training programme and training in disability awareness and equality and diversity training. Each employee has the right to expect not to be unreasonably discriminated against, either directly or indirectly, in the opportunities to be trained, in how it is provided, where it is provided and through what medium. All new employees shall receive induction training within one month of starting work to give them a good understanding of the organisation and its policies and practices. Regular and appropriate training will be provided to all staff to enable them to perform their jobs effectively and to ensure that they have the best opportunities for advancement. All staff involved in selection or interviewing shall be trained to ensure that appointments are made on an objective basis. Personnel involved in management, selection and dealing with the public shall be trained and receive guidance in the law, best practice and organisational policy, their own personal responsibilities and corporate liability under the law and the nature and effect of both reasonable and unreasonable discrimination.
• Terms and Conditions of Employment
• Wisdom House complies with the Equal Pay Acts and is committed to ensuring that they do not unreasonably discriminate against any individual in the terms and conditions, both contractual and implied, within which they offer and provide employment. Staff facilities and services shall be equally available to all employees and where, for reasons of space and cost, this is not being achieved, reasonable alterations will be made. Contracts and Terms and Conditions of employment shall be made available in a variety of media and positive consideration will always be given to requests for them in other formats.