All allegations of Discrimination or harassment will be dealt with seriously, promptly and in confidence. Employees who feel they have been discriminated against or harassed must not hesitate in using this procedure nor fear victimisation. Retaliation against an employee who brings a complaint of Discrimination or harassment is a serious disciplinary offence which may constitute gross misconduct.
Below we detail the procedures for reporting any incidents of discrimination and describe what action FT2 will take following such reports.
a. Wherever possible, personnel who believe that they are the subject of racism, sexism and sexual harassment, physical and verbal violence should seek in the first instance to prevent further incidents by requesting the person responsible to stop the discriminatory behaviour.
In circumstances where this is too difficult or embarrassing for you to do so or you have sought to manage the situation but the discrimination continues, you should report the matter to the Director. A verbal report of the alleged act should be made to the Director of FT2 or the appropriate FT2 Officer, i.e. Placement Co-ordinator, or Internal Verifier, in the first instance.
b. FT2 will handle all complaints in a timely and confidential manner and guarantees all personnel a fair and impartial hearing.
c. If the investigation reveals that the complaint is valid, prompt attention and disciplinary action designed to stop the discrimination immediately and prevent its recurrence will be taken.
d. FT2 will protect all personnel from intimidation, victimisation or discrimination for filing a complaint or assisting in an investigation.
FT2 will take disciplinary action against any personnel found to have retaliated against anyone who has filed a complaint or assisted in an investigation.
e. Where complaints of discrimination or harassment arise from the behaviour or action of someone not directly employed by FT2, for example during attachment to production/ construction companies and contracted training providers, FT2 will implement the above procedures and agree appropriate remedial action to protect the individual experiencing discrimination.
With the agreement of the individual concerned, FT2 will report formally incidents of discrimination directly to production / construction companies and training providers so that they can meet their legal requirements.
Guidance from the Commission for Racial Equality, Health & Safety Executive and the Equal Opportunities Commission on racism, sexism and sexual harassment, physical and verbal violence in the workplace can be obtained from their websites - www.cre.gov.uk, www.hse.gov.uk and www.eoc.org.uk.
We will review our Equal Opportunities Policy and Procedures regularly to ensure that they are current and relevant and circulate revisions.
