EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES AND DIVERSITY POLICY

Jefferson Talent Group embraces diversity and seek to promote the benefits of diversity in all of our business activities. We seek to develop a business culture that reflects that belief. We seek to widen the media in which we recruit to ensure as diverse an employee and candidate base as possible and strive to make sure that our clients meet their own diversity targets.

Jefferson Talent Group is committed to diversity and will promote diversity for all employees, workers, freelancers, contractors and applicants and shall adhere to such a policy at all times. Jefferson Talent Group aims to treat everyone equally irrespective of sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, age, disability, colour, race, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, political beliefs or membership or non-membership of a Trade Union or spent convictions, (“Protected Characteristics”) and places an obligation upon all staff to respect and act in accordance with this policy. The Jefferson Group aims to ensure that its staff comply with proper equal opportunities practice and reviews on an on-going basis all aspects of its recruitment processes to avoid unlawful or undesirable discrimination.

Unlawful discrimination occurs in the following circumstances:

1. Direct discrimination: treating someone less favourably because of a Protected Characteristic. For example, rejecting a job applicant because of their religious views or because they might be gay.
2. Indirect discrimination: a provision, criterion or practice that applies to everyone but adversely affects people with a particular Protected Characteristic more than others, and is not justified. For example, requiring a job to be done full-time rather than part-time would adversely affect women because they generally have greater childcare commitments than men. Such a requirement would be discriminatory unless it can be justified.
3. Harassment: this includes sexual harassment and other unwanted conduct related to a Protected Characteristic, which has the purpose or effect of violating someone’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them. Harassment is dealt with further in our Anti-harassment and Bullying Policy.
4. Victimisation: retaliation against someone who has complained or has supported someone else’s complaint about discrimination or harassment.
5. Disability discrimination: this includes direct and indirect discrimination, any unjustified less favourable treatment because of the effects of a disability, and failure to make reasonable adjustments to alleviate disadvantages caused by a disability.

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

• 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.

Discrimination would also occur if a recruitment consultancy accepted and acted upon a job registration from an employer which states that certain persons are unacceptable due to a Protected Characteristic, unless one of the exceptions applies, for instance, the job demands a genuine occupational requirement or in the case of age, the discrimination can be lawfully justified.

Jefferson Talent Group shall not discriminate unlawfully when deciding which candidate, worker, freelancer and contractor is submitted for a vacancy or assignment, or when setting any terms of employment or engagement for such workers. The Jefferson Group will ensure that each candidate is assessed only in accordance with the candidate’s merits, qualifications and abilities to perform the relevant duties required by the particular vacancy.

Jefferson Talent Group will not accept instructions from clients that indicate an intention to discriminate unlawfully.

Jefferson Talent Group has in place procedures for monitoring compliance with this policy and for dealing with complaints of discrimination. These are available from the Group Managing Partner and will be made available upon request. Any discrimination complaint will be investigated fully.