Grg91 new starters brochure by eclecticblue

Welcome pack

Pa r

kw ay

CAMDEN TOWN

MORNINGTON CRESCENT

WELCOME TO THE TEAM!

Olympic Stadium

KING’S CROSS EUSTON

CLERKENWELL

OXFORD CIRCUS

ST PAULS

MARBLE ARCH

TEMPLE

COVENT GARDEN

Square Grosvenor

LIMEHOUSE STATION

BANK

St. Mary Axe

MANSION HOUSE

TOWERHILL STATION

Strand

Heathrow

KNIGHTSBRIDGE

POPLAR

GREEN PARK

Trafalgar Square

ST. JAMES PARK CANARY WHARF

HYDE PARK CORNER LONDON BRIDGE

WATERLOO

SOUTHWARK

Buckingham

SLOANE SQUARE

Palace Big Ben

I look forward to meeting you. l ya Ro

sp Ho

ita

oa lR

PIMILICO

BURGESS PARK

BATTERSEA PARK

Battersea Power Station

Stuart Gillies Managing Director

et Narrow Strr

HYDE PARK Kinnerton Stre

Life at Gordon Ramsay Group is full of passion, enthusiasm, creativity and flair. Whatever your position, you will play and integral part of the restaurant and the team within it. Many of our employees stay with us year after year, and that’s down to the opportunity we can create for you to progress your career within our ever expanding group of restaurants.

Queen Mary University

Bread Street

REGENT’S PARK

We’re very please to have you on board. You have just joined the most dynamic, exciting group of restaurants in the UK.

CONTENTS A COLLECTION OF BARS AND RESTAURANTS EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK INTRODUCTION CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT Work Permit Working Time Regulations PAYMENT OF SALARY Income Tax Leaver’s payments ATTENDANCE AND APPEARANCE AT WORK Attendance Appearance BENEFITS Holidays Part-Timer Sickness during Annual Leave Making Holiday Request Cancelling Holiday Religious Holidays Pension Scheme Introduce a New Employee Use of the Restaurants – Staff Discount Friends and Family Discount Childcare Vouchers GR Benefits Cycle to Work (CtW) TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT Induction Training Performance and Development Reviews FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICY Maternity Antenatal Care Entitlement to Maternity Leave Notice of Intention to Take Maternity Leave Statutory Maternity Pay Contractual Benefits and Obligations Paternity Leave

Eligibility Length of Ordinary Paternity Leave Statutory Paternity Pay Notice of Intention to Take Paternity Leave Terms and Conditions of Employment while on Paternity Leave Shared Parental Leave Adoption Leave Parental Leave Entitlement to Parental Leave Period of Parental Leave Notice of Parental Leave Postponing Parental Leave Terms and Conditions of Employment during Parental Leave Time off Work for Dependants Compassionate Leave Flexible Working NOTIFICATION OF SICKNESS ABSENCE Self Certification and Doctor Certificates Return to work Non-Attendance or Intermittent Short Term Absences Statutory Sick Pay Doctor and Dentist Appointments Hospital Appointments Jury Service Long Term Absence HEALTH AND SAFETY Responsibilities under Health and Safety Food Safety and Hygiene Infectious Diseases Accidents and First Aid Fire Safety Personal Hygiene YOUR CONDUCT Disciplinary Policy Grievance Policy Consumption of Alcohol Drinking at Company Events or Entertaining Clients / Suppliers Use of Illegal Substances Smoking Conduct Outside Work SECURITY Right to Search Cash, Stock and Property Keys

POLICY ON ACCEPTING GIFTS Receipt of gifts - disclosure Invite to events - disclosure INTERNET AND EMAIL POLICY Use of E-mail Email Signature Remote Access of Email Use of the Internet Monitoring Archiving Emails General Computer Usage MOBILE EQUIPMENT SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY Use of social media at work Excessive use of social media at work Monitoring use of social media during work time Social media in your personal life Disciplinary action over social media use RETIREMENT POLICY Retirement Procedure TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT AND NOTICE Equal Opportunities Direct Discrimination Indirect Discrimination Failure to make reasonable adjustments Harassment Victimisation Recruitment Promotion Training Post Termination CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROTECTION Contact with the Press Policy Statement Responsibility Processing Personal Data Security of Data Whistle Blowing Policy

APPRAISAL & EVALUATIONS EMPLOYEE NOTES & COMMENTS

A collection of restaurants and bars

OPENDED 1998 LOCATION CHELSEA CUISINE FRENCH Holder of 3 Michelin stars. Chef Patron, Clare Smyth leads the dynamic team in providing elegant and unsurpassed modern French cuisine. A truly intimate restaurant matched by exquisite cuisine. 020 7352 4441 royalhospitalroad@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/royalhospitalroad /RestaurantGordonRamsay @restaurant_gr

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

OPENDED 2010 LOCATION KNIGHTSBRIDGE CUISINE FRENCH Awarded a Michelin Star in 2011 Pétrus represents fine dining at its very best. A stylish and modern French menu is perfectly complemented by the restaurants stunning environment. 020 7592 1609 petrus@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/petrus /pages/Pétrus/115879221819742 @petrus

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

KITCHEN TABLE

OPENDED 2005 LOCATION MAYFAIR CUISINE FRENCH WITH ASIAN INFLUENCE A combination of French dishes and Asian influences offers a unique tasting experience. Michelin star service and award winning menus combined with inventive cocktails allows maze to deliver modern dining at its very best. The sushi bar has the freshest selection of sushi created in front of guests. 020 7107 0000 maze@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/maze /RestaurantGordonRamsay @mazerestaurant

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

100

GROUP DINING

KITCHEN TABLE

MAZE VIEW

DALBY ROOM

HAMPTON ROOM

SOMERTON ROOM

OPENDED 2008 LOCATION MAYFAIR CUISINE NEW YORK STYLE GRILL A menu packed with the very best grill and steak offerings to be had. Drawing its inspiration from the New York grill restaurants a warm welcome is on hand matched with expert advice on our wide range of breeds and cuts available. 020 7495 2211 mazegrill@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/mazegrill /MazeGrill @mazegrill

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

GROUP DINING

BUTCHERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S BLOCK

OPENDED 2010 LOCATION THE STRAND CUISINE CLASSIC BRITISH The dining room has been restored to its former glory and with an elegant 1920’s theme – glamorous and theatrical. The original classic among the great historic dining room’s in London today. 020 7592 1600 savoygrill@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/thesavoygrill / thesavoygrill @savoygrill

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

100

GROUP DINING

KITCHEN TABLE

D’OYLY CARTE ROOM

OPENDED 2013 LOCATION SOUTHWARK CUISINE ITALIAN Offering quality Italian influenced food with a daily changing menu, prepared in an open theatre style kitchen. Serving fresh, seasonal produce and artisan ingredients. The downstairs bar is a local urban living room which serves creative and classic cocktails. 020 7592 7977 unionstreetcafe@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/union-street-cafe /unionstcafe @unionstreetcafe

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

100

GROUP DINING

BAR MEDIA ROOM

OPENDED 2011 LOCATION THE CITY CUISINE MODERN Bread Street Kitchen is a bustling, large and breath-taking space. A stunning mix of vintage and modern brought together by an everchanging menu. 020 3030 4050 info@breadstreetkitchen.com gordonramsay.com/bread-street /BreadStreetKitchen @breadstkitchen

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

220

500

GROUP DINING

100

DOWNSTAIRS BAR

UPSTAIRS BAR

100

OPENDED 2014 LOCATION REGENT STREETâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S FOOD QUARTER CUISINE MODERN Housed over two floors with a contemporary interior and a relaxed, modern European menu by head chef Maria Tampakis. From brisk brunches and post-shopping pit stops through to lunch, dinners and after work cocktails, plus a private dining room with full multimedia facilities. 020 7592 1212 heddonstreetkitchen@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/heddon-street /heddonstreetkitchen @heddonstkitchen

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

PRIVATE DINING

OPENDED 2008 LOCATION CAMDEN CUISINE MODERN BRITISH A stylish townhouse, restaurant, deli and destination bar serving a modern British dining menu. There are also nine gorgeous bedrooms and several private areas and rooms perfect for parties, meetings and special occasions. 020 7592 1227 yorkandalbany@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/yorkandalbany /YorkandAlbany @yorkandalbany

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE (SPLIT LEVELS)

200

GROUP DINING

BAR

100

PIZZA DELI

REGENCY ROOM

GLOUCESTER GATE

OPENDED 2014 LOCATION BATTERSEA CUISINE MODERN EUROPEAN This relaxed, cosy restaurant offers Modern European cooking and a polished destination cocktail bar in the heart of Battersea Square. 020 7592 8545 londonhouse@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/london-house /LondonHouseSW11 @londonhouse

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

GROUP DINING

OPENDED 2008 LOCATION HEATHROW AIRPORT CUISINE EXPRESS DINING Based departure side at Terminal 5 - an extensive menu from a classic breakfast to salads and steaks. Guests can enjoy a pre-flight cocktail or if pressed for time guests can purchase the Plane Food picnic to enjoy on board. 020 8897 4545 planefood@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/planefood /PlaneFood @planefood

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

GROUP DINING

OPENDED 2007 LOCATION LIMEHOUSE CUISINE BRITISH EUROPEAN Serves simple and elegant food sourced from the best produce around the British Isles as well as European artisan products. There are also fresh cuts, fish of the day and other British classics , and drinks can be enjoyed in the white-washed wood bar with views of the river. 020 7592 7950 thenarrow@gordonramsay.com gordonramsay.com/thenarrow /TheNarrow @thenarrow

GROUPS & PRIVATE DINING EXCLUSIVE HIRE

200

GROUP DINING

BAR & LOUNGE

RIVER ROOM

Employee handbook

INTRODUCTION This handbook forms part of the policies and procedures of the Gordon Ramsay Holdings (“the Company”) and it is your responsibility to ensure that, along with your contract of employment, you have read and understood the contents of this handbook and you adhere to these policies and procedures throughout your employment with the Company. If there is anything you do not understand or require further clarification on, you must speak to your Manager or the HR Department. Save for where stated, the handbook does not form part of the terms and conditions of your employment.

CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT

It is your responsibility to ensure, if applicable, that you check the accuracy and sign timesheets on a weekly basis in your department to ensure that an accurate record of hours worked per week is kept. Please check the main notice board for details of any workforce agreement with regards to the Working Time Regulations.

PAYMENT OF SALARY Your pay period will be specified in your contract of employment and your salary will be paid directly into your nominated bank or building society. If you leave the Company final monies due will be paid on the next pay date.

Every employee is issued with a contract of employment either prior to joining the Company or within one week of receiving the requisite induction. The contract forms the basis of the employment relationship between yourself and the Company.

Please ensure that you have your bank/building society details, P45 and National Insurance Number when you join the Company and keep the Company informed of any changes to this information by informing the Human Resources Department in writing.

RIGHT TO WORK

INCOME TAX

It is imperative to ensure that if you have permission to work in the UK, and that (if need be) it is renewed by the specified time as stated in your visa. You must supply the correct documentation relating to this to the Human Resources Department prior to your permission expiring to ensure your continued employment with the Company. Failure to have valid permission may lead to the immediate termination of your employment.

When you start work if you have a P45 you should give it to the Human Resources Department who will process it as part of the payroll. If you do not have a P45 then you should complete a P46 available from your Line Manager or the Human Resources Department.

WORKING TIME REGULATIONS The Working Time Regulations came into effect in October 1998. The main aim was to lay down minimum conditions relating to weekly working time, rest entitlements and annual leave, and make special provision for night workers. Your contract of employment may specify information regarding the Regulations.

At the end of each tax year if you are still employed by the Company you will receive a P60 form detailing the total gross pay, tax and national insurance that you have paid in the applicable tax year. You should retain this document in a safe place, as you may need to produce it if making enquiries with the HMRC.

LEAVER’S PAYMENTS On termination of employment, provided all items of Company property are returned and you do not owe any sums to the Company, the final monies due will be processed in the next pay run payment being made as usual direct into your bank account. Where items of Company property are outstanding, then the final payment will not be released until all Company property is returned. If this is the case, the payment may be made by cheque, rather than into your bank account. The Company shall be entitled to make deductions from any final monies due to an employee. Some examples of deductions that will be made are as follows: any outstanding loans, advances, damage caused to Company property by the employee, excess holidays taken, deduction to cover unreturned Company property including uniform and locker keys, any overpayments or monies fraudulently taken from the Company by the employee. An employee’s leaving pay will be processed as part of the normal pay cycle and the P45 will be sent to the employee’s home address. Any queries relating to your salary should be addressed to the Human Resources Department.

ATTENDANCE & APPEARANCE AT WORK ATTENDANCE To ensure the smooth running of the restaurant or support office employees are expected to arrive at work in good time to start their shift. It is an employee’s responsibility to ensure that they are fully aware of the shifts that they have been rota’d to work each week. Persistent lateness and absence will be addressed within the Company’s disciplinary procedure.

APPEARANCE All employees while at work must ensure they are well presented ensuring they comply with the dress code of their role and restaurant. If you are issued with a uniform, you are expected to wear it at all times during your working hours ensuring that it is clean, smart, in good repair and clothes are fully ironed and shoes polished. If you wear your own clothes they must be clean, smart, pressed and business like. Hair must be clean and neatly styled, non-conventional hair colour or styles may not be allowed depending on the working environment. Speak to your line manager if you are unsure. Good personal hygiene is expected at all times. Tattoos may need to be covered while at work and will be confirmed by the Line Manager. Jewellery should be discreet and kept to a minimum.

BENEFITS HOLIDAYS Your holiday entitlement is detailed in your contract of employment. Our holiday year runs from the 1 January to 31 December each year. If you leave or join the Company part way through the holiday year you will have a proportionate holiday entitlement for that year. When you leave the Company, the Company may at its discretion, permit or require you to take the whole or part of any accrued holiday entitlement during your notice period, or may pay you for any outstanding accrued entitlement at termination. If you have taken excess holidays they will be deducted from your final pay or you will be required to refund monies in respect of these days. Leave must be taken during the holiday year in which it is earned. You are not permitted to carry forward leave to the next holiday year. Proportions of holiday must be taken within specified times of the year. No more than 2 weeks holiday should be taken at any one time without the prior agreement from the HR Director. The minimum holiday that can be taken at one time is half a day. If we close the restaurant, at which you are principally employed, over the Christmas and New Year period or at any other time, the days during which the restaurant is closed and you are not required to work, which are non public holidays shall count towards holiday taken and hence be deducted from your annual holiday entitlement. The annual holiday entitlement, including entitlement to UK bank and public holidays, of each restaurant employee is based on length of service as follows:

• • • • •

1 year’s service (prior to the start of the current holiday year) you will receive 28 days holiday which includes bank and public holidays. 2 years service at the start of the holiday year, 1 January, you will receive 29 days holiday which includes bank and public holiday. 3 years service at the start of the holiday year, 1 January, you will receive 30 days holiday which includes bank and public holiday. 4 years service at the start of the holiday year, 1 January, you will receive 31 days holiday which includes bank and public holidays. 5 years service, or more, at the start of the holiday year, 1 January, you will receive 32 days holiday which includes bank and public holidays.

PART-TIMER Your entitlement will be calculated pro-rata to the number of days you work and will be rounded up to the nearest half day where appropriate.

SICKNESS DURING ANNUAL LEAVE When an employee is sick while on annual leave they must follow the procedure detailed below:

REPORTING

The employee must report any periods of sickness during annual leave for which they intend to reclaim leave by calling their Line Manager on the date of sickness or as soon as reasonably practicable afterwards but in any event no later than 48 hours after the commencement of the sickness.

EVIDENCE

The employee must provide medical evidence (at their own expense) of sickness absence whilst on holiday from day one of the absence i.e. no self-certification.

CANCELLING HOLIDAY Holiday cancellations should be made by speaking to your Line Manager. If you wish to cancel booked holidays due to sickness a doctor’s certificate is required regardless of length of absence.

PAY

Any pay for periods of illness during annual leave will be limited to Statutory Sick Pay.

REPLACEMENT HOLIDAY

Any additional leave resulting from sickness during earlier annual leave must be taken at a time that is convenient to the business.

RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS The Company will seek, wherever possible, to allow employees to use holiday entitlement to observe special religious holidays or festivals. All employees, whatever their religion or belief, will be treated equally in this respect. All requests must be submitted via the annual leave procedure.

MAKING HOLIDAY REQUEST To request holiday please check your holiday Calendar on fourth before you place your request. As the minimum you should request your holiday with twice as much notice as the amount of days you are requesting off (i.e. for a one-week holiday you must request this at least two weeks before). However we advise that you request holidays as far in advance as possible so that we can endeavour to meet your requests. Your Manager will respond to your request as soon as possible. Holidays will be granted subject to operational requirements and the need to maintain reasonable staffing levels. For any holiday not granted you will need to submit alternative dates. If you book any holidays before the dates have been approved then this is done at your own risk. The Company has the right to specify dates for you to take all or part of your annual leave, such as the restaurant closing or times with a lull in business.

PENSION SCHEME The Company operates a contributory pension scheme which you will be eligible to participate in, subject to any statutory limits imposed from time to time and subject always to the rules of the scheme. The Company may at its absolute discretion terminate its participation in the scheme or to substitute another pension scheme. Details of the scheme can be obtained from the HR Department.

INTRODUCE A NEW EMPLOYEE One of our core values is to continually aim to find, develop and mentor new waves of talent. We wish to reward employees who introduce new full-time employees to the Company.

MANAGEMENT POSITIONS:

• •

*£500 if the referred friend remains in employment for 3 months A further *£500 If the referred friend remains in employment for 6 months

NON-MANAGEMENT POSITIONS:

•

*£250 if the referred friend remains in employment for 6 months

*Please note that amounts are gross, and are therefore subject to tax and NI.

IN THREE EASY STEPS: 1. 2. 3.

Direct your friend to www.gordonramsay.com/careers to apply for a role. Your friend will need to enter your name on application: ‘I was referred by…………’ If your friend is offered a role and stays for the relevant timeframes, payment will be made directly through payroll, and will be paid into your account on the nearest pay date after the 3/6 month service date has passed.

• •

months and is seeking to return. A candidate is already on a permanent or temporary contract and is seeking to move between business units. If an employee or a manager is directly involved in the recruitment process.

Please note that applications should only be submitted with the permission of the candidate involved and only if the candidate meets the minimum standards required for the role. The current employee referring the candidate will not be involved in the recruitment process for the vacant role.

USE OF THE RESTAURANTS STAFF DISCOUNT Our restaurants can be used outside of working hours by making a booking via the Guest Operations Manager in the Reservations Department at the Support Office. All employees with over 3 months service will be entitled to 30% discount on any restaurant booking covering both food and beverage:

• • •

Discount applies on groups up to 6 Discount applies on all menus, including set menus Bookings are subject to availability and should be booked a minimum 48 hours in advance

The staff discount will increase based on length of service, [with the exception of being applied on bookings in Restaurant Gordon Ramsay or Petrus,] as follows:

• •

Employees with 1 years’ service – staff discount entitlement increases to 40% discount Employees with 2 years’ service + - staff discount entitlement increase to 50% discount

THE REWARD WILL NOT BE PAID IF:

• • •

A candidate is already on a temporary contract, is working as an agency worker or contractor for Gordon Ramsay Group. The referral comes through an employment agency. The referred candidate has left the Group in the last 12

FRIENDS AND FAMILY DISCOUNT All staff will be entitled to receive a 15% discount for their friends and family on food and beverage after 3 months’ service

with the Company: • Discount applies on groups up to 6 • Discount applies on all menus, including set menus • Friends & Family Discount does not apply to Restaurant Gordon Ramsay or Petrus • A maximum number of 10 bookings can be made in one year by an employee • Bookings must be made via the Guest Operations Manager in the Reservations Department Employees with 1 year’s service – friends and family discount will increase to 20% discount on food and beverage. The same terms apply as above. It is essential that when an employee dines in one of our restaurants you must conduct yourself appropriately and be mindful at all times of the imression you are providing to our guests. When off duty you are not allowed in the restaurant where you are employed without the permission of the General Manager/Restaurant Manager.

CHILDCARE VOUCHERS Employees with children can apply for Childcare Vouchers which allow you sacrifice some of your salary for childcare vouchers allowing you to benefit from reduced tax and national insurance payments. An employee can sacrifice up to a maximum of £243 per month in salary for childcare vouchers depending on the rate of tax they pay. The value of the vouchers requested is taken off your gross salary this can provide savings of up to £77.76 per month in tax and national insurance (or £933.12 per annum) for lower rate tax payers. If you wish to understand more about childcare vouchers please contact the Human Resources Department. NB. Please note that from Autumn 2015, only current participants of this scheme will be able to receive childcare vouchers. The scheme will not be available to new participants post Autumn 2015 when the taxfree childcare scheme will be in force.

GR BENEFITS ASPERITY REWARD GATEWAY GR Benefits is an online portal that offers all employees access to various benefits and discounts on a selected number of products and services. This benefit offers employee discounts across a number of significant brands and retailers including supermarkets, electronics, theatre tickets, holidays and high street retailers. The solution also provides access to discounted vouchers and re-loadable cards. Employees will be able to browse the offers, check their Cashback balance, withdraw or spend their Cashback and buy gift vouchers. The app is fully employer branded, and works on any smartphone browser. The app allows employees to search for local offers based on their location. Simply register at www. grbenefits.co.uk using your employee number and then browse the site for the deals and discounts right for you.

CYCLE TO WORK (CTW) Employees will have access to the Cycle to Work Scheme via the GR Benefits - Asperity Reward Gateway. There will be a selection widow twice a year that employees will be able to join the Scheme. Please contact the Human Resources Department to gain further details about this benefit.

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

strive to provide a culture where everyone feels their views are valued and listened to and ideas are put into action.

We are committed to developing our employees. We will endeavour at all times to ensure that you have on-going development from induction training to areas identified from your appraisal. This will include on the job training and attending structured learning and development activities as appropriate.

The staff notice board and communication board in your restaurant are key communication methods. It is your responsibility to keep updated with the regular information on the notice boards.

FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICY INDUCTION TRAINING A structured programme is put in place for your first 12 weeks of employment, with your performance being reviewed though out the 12 week period. This will include both formal and informal development activities to ensure that you have the skills and knowledge to do your job. In addition to the nominated training for all employees, additional training and development will be identified on an ongoing basis through review meetings and the appraisal process. This will involve the interaction and commitment of you and your Manager.

PERFORMANCE AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEWS The Company is committed to a review process, which allows each team member to receive formal feedback on their performance, and the opportunity to discuss their development needs and career aspirations. You will receive a minimum of one formal performance review on or around the anniversary of you commencing work with the Company as well as periodic informal reviews during the year. Reviews are generally documented with each employee receiving a copy of the document. The Company is fully aware of the need for any successful organisation to have effective lines of communication. We have in place a network of meetings as well as job chats and appraisals to ensure that communication is regular and everyone is kept aware of how we are doing against the targets we set ourselves. We will encourage cross-team communication and

NB: If your child is due after 5 April 2015, please speak to HR Department about your options as you may be eligible for Shared Parental Leave.

MATERNITY You should inform your Manager if you become pregnant. You will also have the opportunity to discuss the situation with Human Resources who will ensure that your workplace and job meets the requirements of the health and safety legislation, relevant to new and expectant Mothers.

ANTENATAL CARE If you are pregnant you are entitled to take reasonable time off during your normal working hours to attend appointments for antenatal care irrespective of your length of service, although whenever possible you should arrange your appointments at the start or end of your working day, or on a day when you do not normally work. Antenatal care is not restricted to medical examinations. It can include relaxation classes as long as these are advised by a registered medical practitioner, registered midwife or registered health visitor. You must advise your Manager that you will be absent as far in advance of your appointment as possible. You will be asked to produce your appointment card, or some other confirmation of your appointment. This will not be required for the first appointment.

There will be no deduction from your salary for attendance at authorised antenatal appointments, including any time spent travelling to the appointment.

When your OML commences because of a pregnancy-related illness, or due to premature birth, the Company will send such notification within 28 days of the date on which you commence your OML.

ENTITLEMENT TO MATERNITY LEAVE

If you wish to return to work before the end of your AML, you must give the Company at least 8 weeks’ advance written notice of the date on which you intend to return to work. If you fail to give appropriate notice, the Company can delay your return to work for 8 weeks or until the end of your AML period, whichever is the earlier.

All pregnant employees are entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave – 26 weeks Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML) and 26 weeks Additional Maternity Leave (AML). You are required by law to take a minimum of two weeks’ compulsory maternity leave immediately after childbirth. This forms part of your OML period.

NOTICE OF INTENTION TO TAKE MATERNITY LEAVE If you are pregnant you will be required to notify the Company of your intention to take maternity leave by the 15th week before your expected week of childbirth (EWC). You will need to tell us: • • •

That you are pregnant. The week your baby is expected to be born. When you want your maternity leave to start.

Confirmation of the EWC must be provided by the pregnant employee in the form of a MATB1 which is issued by your midwife or Doctor. The original MATB1 document must be provided, photocopies are not acceptable. The MATB1 must be provided at least 28 days before the maternity leave is due to start to enable Statutory Maternity Pay to be paid. You can start your maternity leave at any time after the eleventh week before your EWC. After you have notified us of the date that you intend your maternity leave to start, you can change the date provided that you give the Company at least 28 days’ notice, unless this is not reasonably practicable. The Company will notify you of the date on which your AML period will end within 28 days of receiving written notification from you of the date on which you intend your OML to start.

On returning to work from maternity leave, you generally have the right to return to the same job on the same terms and conditions as you would have had if you hadn’t been away. Occasionally, after AML, it may not be reasonably practicable for you to return to your original position. If this is the case, you will, if practicable, be offered another suitable and appropriate job with comparable salary, conditions and status. In the event of illness at the end of your maternity leave, the normal Company rules on sick leave will apply.

STATUTORY MATERNITY PAY To qualify for statutory maternity pay (“SMP”) you must, amongst other things, have at least 26 weeks’ continuous service with the Company at the end of the fifteenth week before your expected week of childbirth. SMP is payable for a maximum of 39 weeks. The first 6 weeks of SMP are payable at a higher rate which is equivalent to 90% of your average weekly earnings. The last 33 weeks will be paid at a flat rate laid down by statute (or the 90% rate if this is lower). If you do not qualify for SMP you may be entitled to claim State Maternity Allowance. The HR Department will be able to advise you on how to make a claim for this.

If you and the Company agree you may carry out up to 10 days’ work for the Company during the maternity leave period without bringing your maternity leave or your entitlement to SMP to an end. These are known as “Keeping in Touch Days” and are designed to ease your return to work. They could be used for training or other events as well as work.

You can choose to start your leave:

The Company may make reasonable contact with an employee on maternity leave for a number of reasons, such as to discuss arrangements for her return to work.

•

PATERNITY LEAVE ELIGIBILITY You will need to satisfy the following conditions in order to qualify for paternity leave. You must: • • • •

Be an employee of the Company. Have or expect to have responsibility for the child’s upbringing. Be the biological father of the child or the mother’s husband or partner, or civil partner. Have been continuously employed by the Company for at least 26 weeks by the end of the fifteenth week before the expected week of childbirth.

You may also be eligible to take paternity leave if you are one member of a couple who is jointly adopting a child, or the partner of an individual adopting a child. For further information you should contact the HR Department.

LENGTH OF ORDINARY PATERNITY LEAVE Eligible staff will be entitled to choose to take either one week or two consecutive weeks’ ordinary paternity leave (you cannot take single days).

• •

From the date of the child’s birth (whether this is earlier or later than expected), or From a chosen number of days or weeks after the date of the child’s birth (whether this is earlier or later than expected), or From a chosen date

Leave can start on any day of the week on or following the child’s birth but must be taken: • •

Within 56 days of the actual date of birth of the child, or If the child is born early, within the period from the actual date of birth up to 56 days after the expected week of birth.

Only one period of leave can be taken, irrespective of whether more than one child is born as the result of the same pregnancy.

STATUTORY PATERNITY PAY To qualify for Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) you must, amongst other things have been continuously employed by the Company for at least 26 weeks at the end of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth, or in the case of adoption, by the week in which the approved match has been made with the child. SPP will be paid for either one or two consecutive weeks as chosen at the statutory rate or 90% of average weekly earnings, if this is less. If you are entitled to SPP it will be paid in the month you take the paternity leave, along with the other monies you are due for that pay period. Please note that if you do take paternity leave the Company does not pay the differential in your normal salary for the period. If you do not qualify for SPP you may be able to get Income Support while on paternity leave. Additional financial support may be available through Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit, Tax Credits or Sure Start Maternity Grant. Further information is available from your local Social Security Office.

NOTICE OF INTENTION TO TAKE PATERNITY LEAVE You will be required to inform the Company, in writing of your intention to take paternity leave by the 15th week before the baby is expected, unless this is not reasonably practicable. You will need to inform the Company: • • • •

The expected week of the child’s birth. Whether you wish to take one or two weeks’ paternity leave. When you want your leave to start. Provide an original copy of the MATB1 form.

You will be able to change your mind about the date on which you want your leave to start providing you give written notice to the Company at least 28 days in advance (unless this is not reasonably practicable).

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT WHILE ON PATERNITY LEAVE Whilst on Paternity Leave, you will continue to benefit from the terms and conditions that would have applied to you had you been at work, except for remuneration i.e. wages or salary and any contractual allowances. You will remain subject to your contractual obligations and duties owed to the Company. On returning to work after paternity leave, you generally have the right to return to the same job on the same terms and conditions as you would have had had you not been away.

SHARED PARENTAL LEAVE Shared Parental Leave (SPL) is a form of leave available to working parents following the birth of a child who is expected to be born on or after 5 April 2015. SPL allows parents to take up to 52 weeks leave in total on the birth of a child. Parents may take this leave at the same or at different times. SPL is also available where an adoption agency places a child with you and/or your partner on or after 5 April 2015. The

eligibility and procedural requirements are largely the same as those set out below; however, specific details of SPL for adoptive parents are available from the HR Department.

In order to qualify: •

you must have at least 26 weeks’ continuous employment with us by the end of the Qualifying Week, and still be employed by us in the week before the leave is to be taken;

•

the other parent must have worked (in an employed or selfemployed capacity) in at least 26 of the 66 weeks before the EWC and had average weekly earnings of at least £30 during 13 of those weeks; and

•

you and the other parent must give the necessary statutory notices and declarations (available from the HR Department) including notice to end any maternity leave, statutory maternity pay (SMP) or maternity allowance (MA) periods.

This policy only applies to employees and does not form part of your contract of employment. We may amend it at any time.

TERMS APPLICABLE TO THIS POLICY Expected week of childbirth (EWC): the week, beginning on a Sunday, in which the doctor or midwife expects your child to be born.

PARENT

One of two people who will share the main responsibility for the child’s upbringing (and who may be either the mother, the father, or the mother’s partner if not the father).

PARTNER

Spouse, civil partner or someone living with another person in an enduring family relationship, but not a sibling, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, aunt, uncle, niece or nephew.

QUALIFYING

Week: the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth.

The total amount of SPL available is 52 weeks, less the weeks spent by the child’s mother on maternity leave (or the weeks in which the mother has been in receipt of SMP or MA if she is not entitled to maternity leave). If you are the mother you cannot start SPL until after the compulsory maternity leave period. If you are the child’s father or the mother’s partner, you should consider using your two weeks’ paternity leave before taking SPL. Once you start SPL you will lose any untaken paternity leave entitlement. SPL entitlement is additional to your paternity leave entitlement.

ENTITLEMENT TO SPL You are entitled to SPL in relation to the birth of a child if: •

you are the child’s mother, and share the main responsibility for the care of the child with the child’s father (or your partner, if the father is not your partner);

•

you are the child’s father and share the main responsibility for the care of the child with the child’s mother; or

•

you are the mother’s partner and share the main responsibility for the care of the child with the mother (where the child’s father does not share the main responsibility with the mother).

OPTING IN TO SHARED PARENTAL LEAVE AND PAY Not less than eight weeks before the date you intend your SPL to start, you must give us a written opt-in notice providing certain prescribed information to the Company. Please ask the HR Department for details of what to include in the opt-in notice.

EVIDENCE OF ENTITLEMENT AND CONTACT DETAILS On request from the HR Department, you must provide: a) A copy of the birth certificate (or if you have not yet obtained a birth certificate, a signed declaration of the child’s date and place of birth); and b) The name of address of your partner’s employer (or a declaration that they have no employer). Providing false information to the HR Department on any of the terms under this policy is prohibited and may be subject to disciplinary proceedings. Should you choose to exercise your right to SPL; you agree that the HR Department may from time to time contact your partner’s employer to discuss and, if necessary, to verify the SPL arrangements for your child.

ENDING MATERNITY LEAVE If you are the child’s mother and are still on maternity leave, you must give us at least eight weeks’ written notice to end your maternity leave (referred to as a “curtailment notice”) before you can take SPL. The HR Department can provide you with the information which must be included in such a curtailment notice. You can give the notice before or after you give birth, but you cannot end your maternity leave until at least two weeks after birth. You must also give us, at the same time as the curtailment notice, a notice to opt into the SPL scheme or a written declaration that the child’s father or your partner has given his or her employer an opt-in notice and that you have given the necessary declarations in that notice. The other parent may be eligible to take SPL from their employer before your maternity leave ends, provided you have given the curtailment notice. The curtailment notice is usually binding and cannot be revoked.

You can only revoke a curtailment notice in certain circumstances. Please speak to the HR Department if you wish to revoke a curtailment notice. If you are the child’s father or the mother’s partner, you will only be able to take SPL once the mother has either: • • • •

returned to work; given her employer a curtailment notice to end her maternity leave; given her employer a curtailment notice to end her SMP (if she is entitled to SMP but not maternity leave); or given a curtailment notice to the benefits office to end her MA (if she is not entitled to maternity leave or SMP).

SPL DATES Having opted into the SPL system you will need to give a period of leave notice telling us the start and end dates of your leave. You may be entitled to split periods of SPL and in certain circumstances may be entitled to change or cancel your periods of SPL. There are certain statutory requirements which we will comply with in this regard. Please discuss all issues concerning SPL dates with the HR Department.

SHARED PARENTAL PAY ShPP of up to 39 weeks (less any weeks of statutory maternity pay claimed by you or the other parent) may be available provided you have at least 26 weeks’ continuous employment with us at the end of the Qualifying Week and your average earnings are not less than the lower earnings limit set by the government each tax year. ShPP is paid at a rate set by the government each year.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT DURING SPL Your terms and conditions of employment remain in force during SPL, except for the terms relating to pay.

KEEPING IN TOUCH We may make reasonable contact with you from time to time during your SPL although we will keep this to a minimum. This may include contacting you to discuss arrangements for your return to work. You may ask or be asked to work (including attending training) on up to 20 “keeping-in-touch” days (KIT days) during your SPL. This is in addition to any KIT days that you may have taken during maternity leave. You will be paid at your normal basic rate of pay for time spent working on a KIT day and this will be inclusive of any shared parental pay entitlement.

RETURNING TO WORK If you want to end a period of SPL early, you must give us eight weeks’ prior notice of the return date. If you want to extend your SPL you must submit a new period of leave notice at least eight weeks before the date you were due to return to work, assuming you still have SPL entitlement remaining and have not already submitted three period of leave notices. If you are unable to request more SPL you may be able to request annual leave or ordinary parental leave, which will be subject to business need. You are normally entitled to return to work in the position you held before starting SPL, and on the same terms of employment. However, if it is not reasonably practicable for us to allow you to return into the same position, we may, in certain circumstances, give you another suitable and appropriate job on terms and conditions that are not less favourable. If you want to change your hours or other working arrangements on return from SPL you should make a request under our Flexible Working Policy. If you do not want to return to work you should give notice of resignation in accordance with your contract.

ADOPTION LEAVE Adoption leave and pay provisions apply to employees who are expecting a child to be placed with them for adoption by a UK adoption agency. Those employees who are adopting a child should contact the HR Department to get full details of eligibility and entitlement to Statutory Adoption Pay.

The child must be under the age of 18. The right to parental leave lasts for five years from the date on which the child is placed for adoption. Parents of disabled children will be entitled to 18 weeks’ parental unpaid leave and can take the leave up until the child’s eighteenth birthday. Employees who work part-time, a week’s leave is based on their normal working week under their contract of employment.

PARENTAL LEAVE

NB. From 5 April 2015, parental leave can be taken at any time up to the child’s 18th birthday.

ENTITLEMENT TO PARENTAL LEAVE

Any Parental Leave taken with a previous Company must be deducted from the 18 weeks’ entitlement.

Employees, both male and female, are allowed to take unpaid leave, subject to the conditions set out below, to care for a child for whom they have responsibility if: • • •

they have at least 12 months’ service with the Company prior to the leave; and either the child is under 5 years of age (from 5 April 2015, 18 years of age); or the child is disabled and is under 18 years of age.

Parental leave must be taken: • •

•

if the child is under 5, before the child’s fifth birthday; if the child is adopted, no later than the fifth anniversary of adoption or the child’s eighteenth birthday, whichever is the earlier; or if the child is disabled, no later than the child’s eighteenth birthday.

Employees who are eligible will be entitled to take 18 weeks’ parental unpaid leave. This leave may be taken at any time up to the child’s fifth birthday. This right also applies to employees who have acquired formal responsibility for a child e.g. guardians. Employees who have at least one year’s continuous service who adopt a child will also be entitled to 18 weeks’ unpaid leave.

PERIOD OF PARENTAL LEAVE An employee may not take more than four weeks’ leave per child in any one calendar year. The leave must be taken in blocks of one week at a time, except for the parents of disabled children who may take leave in multiplies of one day. Any period of parental leave taken during any previous employment will be taken into account in calculating the entitlement to parental leave in respect of that child during your employment with the Company. You must authorise your previous employer to notify us of your parental leave status if you ask us to do so.

NOTICE OF PARENTAL LEAVE •

•

Employees must give at least 21 days’ notice of an intention to take parental leave, giving the dates when the leave is to start and finish. Applications for parental leave must be made by making the request in writing to the Human Resources Manager and employees will be required to provide evidence of their responsibility for the child and the child’s age. An employee may take time off immediately after the birth a child, and parents immediately after an adoption provided that they give 21 days’ notice before the beginning of the expected week of the child’s birth or placement date for the adoption.

POSTPONING PARENTAL LEAVE It may be necessary to postpone parental leave for up to six months (unless it is being taken immediately after a child is born or adopted) where the Company would be unduly disrupted or would be harmed by the employee’s absence. Postponement will be confirmed in writing within 7 days after the employee’s notice to take leave. The written notification will state the reason for the postponement and set out the new dates of parental leave.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT DURING PARENTAL LEAVE Employees will remain employed during the parental leave period. However the parental leave period will be unpaid and the employee will not receive remuneration for the full period of absence. Employees are obliged to continue to comply with their contractual terms, specifically their obligation of good faith and any contractual terms and conditions relating to notice periods and disclosure of confidential information. Where the Company employs both parents, each will be entitled to parental leave but both employees may not take the parental leave at the same time.

To enable you to take time off you must notify your Manager immediately and gain the appropriate authorisation and give an indication of the expected length of absence. The purpose of this unpaid leave is to deal with immediate requirements and needs of a dependent, rather than to deal with long-term arrangements. ‘Reasonable’ time off will of course vary according to the circumstances of the emergency. For most cases, one or two days should be sufficient to deal with the problem.

Your dependant can be any of the following: • •

•

Your husband, wife, child or parent; Someone who lives with you for example a partner or a grandparent (but does not include anyone who is your employee, tenant, lodger or boarder); Anyone who relies on you, when he or she is ill or injured, either to assist them or to make arrangements for someone else to assist them.

•

you have been continuously employed by the Company for at least 26 weeks at the date on which the application is made; You have not made a formal request to work flexibly during the last 12 months.

You are encouraged to have an initial informal discussion with the HR Department to discuss your desire to change your working arrangements. If, following that discussion, you wish to make an application to change your working arrangements, you should make a formal request. You can make a request to:

You should make a formal written request by completing an application form available from HR which must include the following information:

The Company policy for compassionate leave is that an employee is entitled to 3 days’ paid compassionate leave if they suffer a bereavement of a close relative - Father, Mother, Wife, Husband, Permanent Partner, Child, Brother, Sister, Grandparent, Grandchildren.

• •

•

All time off work for dependants will be unpaid.

You may take a reasonable amount of unpaid time off work in the following circumstances:

•

You are eligible to make a request for flexible working if:

• • •

COMPASSIONATE LEAVE

To help when a dependant gives birth, falls ill, is injured or assaulted; To make arrangements for the care of a sick or injured dependant; To deal with the death of a dependant; To cope when care arrangements for a dependant are unexpectedly disrupted or terminated; To deal with an unexpected incident involving a dependant child at school.

In order to assist you to balance your work and non-work commitments, the Company supports a range of flexible working options.

You should, as far as possible, agree with your Manager how long you will be away from work and any relevant documents should be shown to your Manager.

TIME OFF WORK FOR DEPENDANTS

•

FLEXIBLE WORKING

The number of actual days paid compassionate leave must be authorised and agreed by the employees Line Manager prior to the leave commencing. The granting of paid compassionate leave beyond this is given at the discretion of the HR Director.

• •

• • •

•

change the hours you work; change the times when you are required to work; or work from home (whether for all or part of the week).

that the application is being made under the statutory right to request a flexible working pattern; what effect, if any, you think the proposed change will have on the Company and how, in your opinion, any such effect might be dealt with; the flexible working pattern applied for; the date on which you want the proposed change to take effect; whether a previous application has been made to the Company and if so, when it was made; and the date it is made. Where possible you should make the application at least 12 weeks before you want the change to take effect to give the Company time to properly consider it.

The Company will usually hold a meeting to discuss your application within 28 days of receiving a completed application form. This meeting may be delayed if the person who would normally deal with the application is temporarily absent or unavailable. A chosen companion can accompany you to the meeting. The companion must be a worker employed by the Company. The companion can address the meeting and confer with you during it, but cannot answer questions on your behalf. If the companion is unable to attend the meeting, you can re-arrange the meeting for a date within 7 days of the originally proposed time, provided the new time is convenient to all parties. The Company will inform you of its decision as soon as possible and ideally within 14 days of the meeting. If the Company agrees to the request (including where this is subject to a satisfactory probationary period) the HR Department will complete all necessary paperwork and send it to you.

If the Company cannot agree to the request, the reasons for its decision will be confirmed to you in writing. The application can be refused for one or more of the following business reasons:

You can appeal against the Company’s decision to refuse your request within 14 days of receiving notification of the refusal. The appeal request must:

• • • • • • •

• • •

•

burden of additional costs; detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand; inability to re-organise work among existing staff; inability to recruit additional staff; detrimental impact on quality; detrimental impact on performance; insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work; and planned structural changes.

There may be occasions when the viability of the proposed working arrangement is unclear and at its discretion the Company may propose that the new arrangements be the subject of a trial period. If this is proposed the Company will set down the terms of the trial, including intended duration, success criteria and the parties’ rights to end it.

be in writing; set out the grounds of appeal in full; and be dated

The Company will usually hold a meeting with you to discuss the appeal within 14 days after receipt of your appeal request. You are entitled to have an employee or trade union representative present at the meeting. The Company will inform you of the outcome of the appeal within 14 days of the meeting. If the Company upholds the appeal and agrees to your request the HR Department will complete all necessary paperwork. If the appeal is refused, the grounds for the decision will be confirmed to you in writing.

You are only permitted to make one application each year. Each year runs from the date on which the application was made. If your request or appeal is accepted by the Company the changes to your terms and conditions of employment will be permanent unless agreed otherwise, but subject always to the Company’s right to make reasonable changes to your terms of employment where good business reasons exist.

NOTIFICATION OF SICKNESS ABSENCE The Company’s sickness policy is intended to form part of your terms and conditions of employment. If you are unable to attend work due to illness or incapacity or some other unforeseen reason you must inform your Manager or the most Senior Manager on Duty that you are unable to work as soon as possible and at a very minimum at least two hours before you are due to report for duty, explaining the reason and the likely duration of your absence. If you are unable to call yourself due to incapacity then you must arrange for someone to do so on your behalf. For employees who work nights, they must inform their Manager or the Duty Manager as stated above however the employee must contact work at least two hours prior to the normal shift start time. Please note that above are the minimum stated times and you are reminded you should call as soon as possible once you realise you will be unable to attend work. You should telephone, or arrange for someone to telephone on your behalf in the case of emergencies, your Manager on each subsequent day of absence, and give some indication of when you will be able to return to work and if you have contacted a Doctor. If you have sent in a Medical Certificate then this will indicate the duration of your illness and you need not telephone on a daily basis after a Doctors Certificate is received. Texting or e-mailing are not acceptable methods of communicating with the Company when notifying of sickness absence. A telephone call is the only acceptable method of communication.

SELF CERTIFICATION AND DOCTOR CERTIFICATES If you are unable to work through illness for 7 calendar days or less you should complete a self-certification form immediately upon your return to work. You will be able to obtain a form from your Line Manager. If you are absent from work for 8 or more calendar days you must obtain a Medical Certificate (Med 3 Form) – Statement of Fitness to Work - from your Doctor which you should send to the Human Resources Department, covering the period of your sickness absence. Company and/or Statutory Sick Pay will not be paid unless the appropriate certificates are received (i.e. the self-certification form or Medical Certificate). A private medical form is not acceptable. The Company may require you to obtain a Medical Certificate relating to a period of sickness less than 8 days in duration. If this is requested you are responsible for any charge made by your Doctor. In some circumstances you will be asked to provide a Medical Certificate to certify that you are fit to return to work. This will be especially relevant if you work in a food handling and service area. To be able to return to work prior to a Medical Certificate expiring you must get written confirmation from your Doctor confirming your fitness to return to work. If you are off sick for a period of 4 weeks or more and return to work, then you must verify your fitness to return to work by obtaining written confirmation from your Doctor. Without confirmation on fitness to work you will not be able to commence your normal duties.

RETURN TO WORK On your return to work from any period of sickness your Manager will conduct a “return to work” interview with you. If any Medical Certificates or self-certification forms have not been previously sent they must be handed in at this meeting. It may be necessary for the Company to contact you during your sickness absence, particularly with regard to your work in progress. It is therefore essential that the Human Resources Department is informed of any changes in your contact telephone numbers.

NON-ATTENDANCE OR INTERMITTENT SHORT TERM ABSENCES In order to ensure consistency across the Company all Managers will investigate non-attendance where the levels exceed any one of the following: • • • •

Three occasions of lateness in a rolling twelve month period. Twenty days continuous absence. Three spells of sickness in a rolling twelve month period. Any unauthorised absence.

Please note this is not an exhaustive list on when absence will be investigated. In some cases, dependent upon the outcome, this investigation will result in a meeting being arranged with the employee in order to discuss their absence levels and the reason for it in a fair and factual way. It may also require a Doctor or Specialist Report to determine whether there is any underlying medical cause for the employee’s frequent absences. The Disciplinary or Capability Procedure may be invoked, depending on the circumstances, if there is not an immediate and sustained improvement in the overall attendance levels, or if it is deemed that the absence is potentially not a genuine absence.

STATUTORY SICK PAY If you are eligible you will receive Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) when you are absent from work due to sickness or injury. SSP will be paid at the applicable rate. If you earn at least the Lower Earnings Limit (before tax) per week; you have notified us of your absence; and are sick for at least four consecutive days, you may be entitled to receive SSP at the standard weekly rate. SSP will only be paid for the days on which you would normally work (known as qualifying days). SSP is paid for a maximum of 28 weeks of absence and is subject to statutory deductions. Periods of incapacity for work (PIW) that are eight weeks or less apart are linked and counted as one period of sickness. The Company is not liable to pay you SSP in certain circumstances, some examples of which are listed below:

You are no longer sick;

LONG TERM ABSENCE

• •

When an employee is on long term absence the Company will seek to maintain regular contact with the employee and the employee will have a responsibility to keep the Company informed on an on-going basis of their progress, and ensure all the necessary medical certificates are provided to the Company in good time. Failure to keep the Company informed, and the provision of the required documentation, could lead to disciplinary action being instigated and the absence being deemed as unauthorised.

•

You have reached the end of your contract of employment; You have not actually started work under your contract of employment; You have reached the maximum entitlement to SSP (i.e. had 28 weeks from the Company during a PIW or from a former employer when the last day in which SSP was paid was within eight weeks of the current PIW); You have not complied with the Company’s sickness policy.

DOCTOR AND DENTIST APPOINTMENTS It is in your own interest to be registered with a Doctor and Dentist whose surgeries are near to your home or your place of work. If you need to make an appointment it is expected that you do so outside your working hours. When circumstances make this impractical, please keep your Manager informed at all times and reasonable time off will be authorised as long as sufficient notice is provided.

HOSPITAL APPOINTMENTS Reasonable time off work will be provided to attend hospital appointments, with prior agreement with your Manager. Where practical, you should attend work before and/or after the appointment. You should however endeavour to arrange appointments to fall on your day off.

JURY SERVICE If you are called upon for Jury Service you are not entitled to be paid for your absence while on Jury Service. You will need to claim the full extent of allowances to which you may be entitled to from the court. Your Manager must be kept informed when you receive a request to attend Jury Service and any relevant documents shown to them, particularly as business needs may result in the Company asking you to decline the request in exceptional circumstances.

The Company may request to contact your doctor and/or ask you to be seen by a doctor of the Company’s choosing. The purpose of such a request is to enable the Company to understand what if any steps that could be taken to potentially assist with your return, and to also gain clarity on the likely length of the absence and whether you will be able to return to work in the same capacity. On the basis of the medical reports, the Company will consider what action can be taken and whether suitable alternative work may be available to enable the employee to return to work more quickly, or modifications to their current position. Factors which would be considered by the Company will include: • • • •

Allowing a gradual return to work – building up from parttime to full-time Review work pattern Consider advice from Doctor / Medical Professional Compose a return to work plan – setting goals, time periods, review periods to assess where the plan is being followed and is it working.

Refusal by the employee to co-operate in authorising the Company to contact their Doctor or agree to see an independent medical practitioner will result in the Company having to make decisions based on the limited information available. The Company may investigate the authenticity of an employee’s absence by using independent surveillance services.

HEALTH AND SAFETY RESPONSIBILITIES UNDER HEALTH AND SAFETY We realise the importance of providing an environment for our guests and employees which complies with the Health and Safety legislation and we rely on the co-operation of our employees to fulfil their responsibilities in these areas. The following information is designed to give you an overview of our policies and procedures. During your employment you will be trained in the applicable health and safety areas, so that you can confidently carry out safe working practices at all times. It is your responsibility to ensure that you attend the applicable training and workshop sessions.

FOOD SAFETY AND HYGIENE The aim of Gordon Ramsay Holdings Food Safety Policy and Hazard Analysis is to ensure safe, and the highest quality, food is provided for all its guests and employees. The Company is committed to ensuring the standards of hygiene and safety adopted in respect of its food operations, are over and above those required by the law. We have a commitment to the principles of hazard analysis and have identified the potential food hazards in our operations and implemented effective control and monitoring procedures at those points critical to food safety. All members of management and employees will apply considerable effort, both individually and collectively, towards achieving food safety.

You can find a copy of the Health and Safety Policy in the office of the restaurant. If you require a copy of the Policy it can be obtained from the Human Resources Department.

All kitchen employees, with 3 months or more service, and designated employees will be required to undertake a Basic Food Hygiene course or produce a certificate which is valid within the last 3 years.

In addition to the Company’s obligations, whilst at work all individuals have the following specific responsibilities regarding health and safety:

INFECTIOUS DISEASES

•

To take reasonable care for the health and safety of yourself and others who may be affected by your acts or omissions at work. “Others” include fellow members of staff, customers, guests, contractors and members of the public with whom you come into contact during the course of your work. To co-operate with the Company by complying with the duties and requirements regarding health and safety laid down by the Company and by health and safety legislation. Not to interfere intentionally or recklessly with or misuse anything provided by the Company in the interests of health and safety.

If you contract or come into contact with a serious infectious disease, you must not attend work and must visit your Doctor immediately and then call the Human Resources Department and notify them of your condition, and likely period of absence. Some of the more common infectious diseases listed in the Health and Safety at Work Act are as follows: Measles, Hepatitis, Typhoid, Chicken Pox, Impetigo, German Measles (Rubella), Food Poisoning, Tuberculosis, Scabies, Ringworm, Mumps, Meningitis, Severe Diarrhoea and Polio. This list is not exhaustive.

ACCIDENTS AND FIRST AID A list of trained First Aiders is displayed on the notice board and on departmental notice boards where applicable. Treatment for accidents, however small, must be obtained from one of the

qualified First Aiders on the premises. All accidents to both guests and employees must be reported immediately to your Supervisor or Manager. An Accident and Incident Report Form must be completed by a senior manager and sent to our Health and Safety Consultants by email and on www.psndirect.co.uk (Perry Scott Nash).

FIRE SAFETY You will be made aware of the fire evacuation procedure on your first day of employment. You must always respond promptly to the evacuation alarms. Respect fire safety measures such as keeping corridors and fire exits clear and fire doors closed. If you notice smoke or any other signs of a fire, raise the alarm immediately. Only attempt to tackle a fire if you have been trained on the fire fighting equipment and you are sure the fire is small enough (no larger than a waste paper basket) and your exit is clear – if this is not the case leave the area and close all doors behind you. Do not use any lifts and ensure you leave by the nearest fire escape. During your first day induction at the restaurant you will be shown the fire escapes and the assembly point for your restaurant, where you should wait, until the designated person tells you it is safe to return to the building. Should any employee contravene the Health and Safety and Fire Safety Procedures it may be necessary to instigate disciplinary action which could result in the dismissal of the employee.

PERSONAL HYGIENE The nature of our industry requires that the highest levels of hygiene both personal, and in relation to the products and services we offer, are maintained at all times. Everyone has a personal responsibility for maintaining their own personal hygiene and for ensuring that standards of appearance and dress are maintained to the Company standards.

YOUR CONDUCT DISCIPLINARY POLICY All employees are required to observe the Company’s terms and conditions of employment, the required standards of performance and the Company’s rules. It is the responsibility of all employees to familiarise themselves with the Rules of Work – as defined in the contract of employment, job description, restaurant procedures, order of service, menu specifications, the handbook, policies, notices, emails and staff memoranda as distributed by the Company and instructions given by Line Management, and each employee must clearly understand what is fully expected of them. These documents set out the standards of conduct and performance expected of all employees. Disciplinary procedures help to ensure those standards are maintained and also ensure fairness and consistency of approach in dealing with any failure to observe the Rules of Work. Except where indicated, they are non-contractual and do not confer any legal rights on employees. Corrective coaching and training will usually be the preferred first course of action of your Manager if performance is not of the required standard but it may be necessary to take disciplinary action. During the probationary period for new employees regular performance reviews will take place, however the Company reserves the right to transfer or demote the employee or terminate the employment without observing each stage of the Disciplinary and Capability Procedures. Where an employee fails to abide by the Company Rules of Work, such misconduct will be dealt with as a disciplinary matter in accordance with the following procedure. Very minor misconduct or breaches of rules will normally be dealt with in the first instance through informal discussion between you and your Manager. This does not constitute part of the formal disciplinary procedure. However, Managers will make notes of the date, circumstances and advice given. You will be informed that there is a risk of formal disciplinary proceedings should you fail to meet any requirements for future behaviour.

It is not possible to anticipate and provide expressly for all circumstances where consideration of disciplinary action may be appropriate. For that reason we reserve the right to omit one or more stages of the process where circumstances dictate. In other words, you are not guaranteed to receive a warning before any proposed dismissal. We may enter the disciplinary procedure at any stage that we deem appropriate to the disciplinary issue, having regard at our discretion to matters such as the nature of the poor performance or misconduct, your seniority, the extent to which you are or should already be aware of the issue, your length of service etc. Where the performance of an employee is not at the required level the Manager will support, coach and encourage the employee to achieve a permanent improvement in skills, ability and/or knowledge. Managers are responsible for ensuring their staff achieve the proper standards of work performance. If an employee’s work performance is below standard, the Manager is responsible for investigating the cause and taking suitable action.

INVESTIGATION In the majority of cases, no disciplinary action will generally be taken against you until the matter has been investigated. Depending on the circumstances this may be at the disciplinary meeting itself or at one or more prior investigatory meetings. We may suspend you on full pay while we investigate the matter. Suspension during investigation does not constitute disciplinary action or a pre-judgement of the issue. The period of suspension will be for the duration of the investigation or such other period as we may decide is reasonable. Exceptionally we may suspend you without pay if there are reasonable grounds for believing that you have committed an act of theft, fraud or dishonesty causing financial loss to the Company. If you are subsequently cleared of the allegations, you will be entitled to be paid all monies withheld during the period of suspension. The power to suspend you without pay in these limited circumstances forms part of your terms and conditions of employment.

If we decide that suspension is not required in any case, this has no bearing upon the view which we may ultimately take of the seriousness of the offence or the sanction which we decide to impose. If formal disciplinary action is deemed necessary following any investigation, a disciplinary meeting will be arranged. You will not generally be permitted to be accompanied to an investigation meeting.

DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE If we suspect you have committed an act of misconduct or poor performance you will be informed in writing of the allegations against you and the likely sanction that will be imposed if the allegations are upheld. You will be invited to attend a meeting to discuss this in accordance with the following procedure. You will be interviewed by your Line Manager or such other person as we decide is appropriate who will discuss with you the alleged misconduct or poor performance and any evidence that has been gathered. ou will be given the opportunity to respond to the allegations and put your case before any final decision is made as to whether you should be disciplined and at what level. You will be notified in writing of the outcome of the disciplinary hearing within a reasonable period. We will try to keep you informed if the outcome is likely to be unusually delayed. If we decide that disciplinary action is required then the following sanctions may apply. In deciding what sanction to impose, we will consider the nature of the offence, the extent to which our concerns may already have been brought to your attention outside the formal disciplinary process, your disciplinary record, any mitigating circumstances, the seriousness of the impact of the offence on the Company, the likelihood of effective corrective action by you and any other factors that we reasonably consider appropriate.

• • • • • •

Transfer to another restaurant in the Group Demotion Verbal warning Written warning First and final written warning Final written warning

• • • • •

DISMISSAL For offences of gross misconduct or gross negligence or if you have committed a further offence during the period covered by a final written warning then you may be dismissed. In the case of gross misconduct or gross negligence, dismissal will generally be without notice or notice pay. A written or final written warning will remain in force for 12 months unless otherwise stated. Any warning may be retained on your personnel file beyond this period to the extent it remains relevant to other decisions relating to your employment, for example pay, promotion, etc.

EXAMPLES OF MISCONDUCT The following list provides examples of conduct that will normally be regarded as Misconduct leading to disciplinary meetings. This list is not exhaustive. These are examples only: •

• • •

unsatisfactory work performance/incompetence i.e. failure to carry out your duties to the performance levels indicated during instruction and training. verbal abuse of colleagues or members of the public - using aggressive, abusive language or behaviour. minor breaches of relevant statutory or regulatory requirements. communicating with clients and potential clients and anyone who comes into contact with the Company in a manner that does not create an impression of loyalty, professionalism and competence. minor carelessness, negligence, incompetence or nonperformance of tasks or work related duties. poor time keeping. excessive absenteeism.

• •

failing to treat all property belonging to clients and to the Company with care and respect. obstructing the flow of work. misuse of the Company’s property, including telephones, email and/or internet systems. leaving the work place during working hours without informing an officer of the Company. harassment or intimidation of any colleague; this includes any behaviour or language which indicates a failure to recognise the rights of others to be treated with respect and not to be discriminated against in any way. unauthorised absence from the workplace. failure to follow instructions.

• • • • •

• • •

smoking in designated No Smoking Areas; infringement of health and safety rules; conviction of a criminal offence having a bearing on your employment; misuse of, or disclosing without permission, Company confidential information; competing (or preparing to compete) with the Company or undertaking paid or unpaid work for any third party without the consent of the Company; unauthorised use of computer systems or security passwords; loss of any registration or licence required for the proper performance of your duties; and assisting, encouraging or procuring any other member of staff to commit any act which amounts to gross misconduct; any act of bribery or inducement.

EXAMPLES OF GROSS MISCONDUCT

•

Gross misconduct is serious and unacceptable conduct by an employee. It includes but is not limited to the following actions:

ATTENDANCE AT DISCIPLINARY HEARINGS

•

• • • •

•

• •

theft, fraud or other acts of dishonesty, including falsification of claims or expenses or misappropriation of Company property (including unauthorised borrowing of Company property); wilful or reckless destruction of or damage to Company property; physical violence or threats of physical violence or intimidation; serious rudeness or swearing at other members of staff, management or customers; deliberate harassment, discrimination, victimisation or bullying of candidates, employees, customers, clients or suppliers on grounds of race, sex, sexual orientation, religion, disability or age; insubordination or unreasonable refusal or serious failure to comply with Company instructions or Company policies or standard operating procedures; acts or omissions which bring (or which the Company reasonably considers are likely to bring) the Company into disrepute; unauthorised absence; attending work or being on Company business under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs or being in possession of illegal drugs on Company premises;

You must make every effort to attend any disciplinary hearing. If you fail to attend without proper excuse, we may proceed with the hearing in your absence and draw such inferences as are appropriate from the material in our possession and from your absence. If you suffer from a disability or are otherwise unwell and as a result your ability to represent yourself at a disciplinary hearing may be impaired, you must notify the HR Department immediately. We will then consider what if any steps we can take to ensure you are not unreasonably disadvantaged during the disciplinary process. We will require confirmation from your doctor that you are too sick to attend the hearing, not just that you are too unwell to work. You should notify us at or before the meeting of any witnesses you think we should talk to or documents you think we should look at to assist us with our decision.

REPRESENTATION If you are asked to attend a disciplinary hearing, you have the right to be accompanied by a willing work colleague or trade union representative of your choice if you reasonably request this. You must make a written or verbal request to be accompanied. The request must be made to the HR Department and should be made at the earliest opportunity prior to the hearing. This right does not apply to investigatory meetings although we will usually allow this. We will arrange for the disciplinary hearing to take place. If your chosen representative cannot attend on the date proposed, you can offer an alternative time and date so long as it is reasonable and falls within 5 working days after the date proposed by us. Your chosen representative will be able to address the hearing, put forward your case, sum it up, respond to any views expressed at the hearing and confer with you, but cannot answer questions on your behalf. If your chosen representative disrupts the meeting in such a way that it cannot reasonably continue, we may adjourn the meeting. If your chosen representative continues to disrupt the meeting when it resumes following any adjournment then we will give you the choice of continuing without your representative or our making a decision based on the information known to us without the meeting continuing. If you do not comply with this procedure you may lose your right to be accompanied by your chosen representative. We do not regard it as a reasonable request for an employee to be accompanied by another worker against whom the same disciplinary allegations have been raised or who is otherwise involved in the subject matter of the allegations.

APPEALS If you are unhappy with the outcome of any disciplinary action taken against you, you may appeal against that decision to a more senior manager whom we decide is the most appropriate in the circumstances (the “appeal manager”). If you wish to appeal you must notify the HR Department in writing within 7 days of the date of the letter detailing the outcome of the disciplinary hearing. Your letter should set out the full grounds of your appeal and whether it relates to the finding of guilt, the penalty imposed or both. You will be invited to attend the appeal hearing where you will have the right to be accompanied by your chosen representative and the provisions set out above relating to representation will apply.

We will inform you in writing of our final decision after the appeal hearing. This decision will be final and there is no further right of appeal. If you appeal against a decision to dismiss you, and the appeal manager decides to overturn this decision, you will be reimbursed for any loss of wages/salary backdated to the dismissal date and your employment will be regarded as continuous. However, appealing does not suspend the operation of the dismissal (unless of course it is successful).

SICKNESS DURING DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS

The appeal manager may:

If you go off sick at any time during the disciplinary procedure (including any appeal) you are not entitled to receive Company sick pay. We may in the circumstances withhold Company sick pay in our absolute discretion until the disciplinary process has been completed. If you are cleared of the allegations against you then we will normally pay you Company sick pay for the period whilst you were off sick. If the allegations against you are upheld we are under no obligation to pay Company sick pay to you in respect of any period whilst you were off sick. This section of the disciplinary procedure forms part of your terms and conditions of employment.

• •

GRIEVANCE POLICY

The conduct of the appeal will be a matter for the appeal manager who may call such witnesses and consider such documents as s/he feels appropriate. S/he may also adjourn the meeting to conduct any further enquiries that s/he believes are necessary.

• •

confirm the disciplinary action taken; or uphold the appeal and set aside the original disciplinary action; or substitute an alternative form of disciplinary action or penalty if s/he thinks it appropriate to do so; or propose a higher form of disciplinary action or penalty if s/he thinks that the previous sanction was too lenient in all the circumstances. This may be for exceptional reasons including because the disciplining manager was not aware of all the facts or because s/he was not aware of previous precedent.

You must make every effort to attend the appeal hearing. If you fail to attend without proper excuse we may proceed with the hearing in your absence and draw such inferences as are appropriate from the material in our possession and from your unreasonable absence.

The Company considers it important that good working relationships are maintained at all levels throughout the organisation, and the following procedure has therefore been established to deal with any problem related to employment. The objective of the procedure is to settle all grievances as speedily as possible in a fair and equitable manner. Our policy is to ensure that such grievances are aired and, where possible, resolved quickly and to the satisfaction of all concerned. If you wish to raise an issue formally on any matter affecting your employment or your relationship with the Company you may seek redress in the following manner. This policy sets out the procedure that will be followed in such circumstances. Except where indicated, this procedure is noncontractual and does not confer any legal rights on employees.

We reserve the right to adapt and amend the procedure according to the circumstances of the grievance raised. This procedure does not apply to complaints about any actual or proposed disciplinary action or dismissal. Any concerns which an employee may have about these should be dealt with by appealing through the disciplinary procedure.

INFORMAL DISCUSSION In the first instance if you have a grievance you should discuss it informally with your Manager. The Company will aim to resolve any grievances wherever possible at this stage. Such informal approaches will be treated in confidence and (save in exceptional circumstances, such as where the conduct is so serious that the Company can’t ignore it) will not be reported without your agreement.

STAGE ONE If you feel that the matter has not been resolved through informal discussions, you should put your grievance in writing detailing the exact nature of your grievance to your immediate Manager. Your written grievance should also detail what resolution you are seeking. Where the grievance is against your Manager the matter should be raised with a more senior Manager or the HR Manager. You should provide the Company with any documents or witness statements that you want the Company to take into account in resolving your grievance. It is preferable if these documents could be lodged at the same time as you put your grievance in writing. At or before the meeting you should notify the Company of any witnesses you think we should speak to or documents we should look at to assist in reaching a decision on your grievance. If necessary a meeting will be arranged to discuss the grievance with the applicable Manager. The Manager should give a written response, or arrange a meeting, within 7 working days of the receipt of the grievance. If this is not possible you will be informed of the reason for the delay and told when a response/meeting can be expected.

STAGE TWO

RECORD KEEPING AND CONFIDENTIALITY

If the matter is not resolved, you may appeal the matter, in writing, within 5 working days of your previous response detailing the exact nature of your appeal to a Senior Manager or relevant Director for the Support Office. A meeting will be arranged to hear the grievance ideally within 7 working days.

Records will be kept of the grievance raised, our response, any action taken and the reasons for the action taken. These records are confidential and will be retained in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.

The person hearing the Grievance will give a written response within 7 working days of the hearing. If this is not possible you will be informed of the reason for the delay and told when a response can be expected.

CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL

The decision made at this stage is normally final and concludes the Grievance Policy.

REPRESENTATION The employee concerned is entitled at any stage of the Grievance Policy to be accompanied by a Company or Trade Union representative, provided that the employee has made a reasonable verbal or written request to be accompanied. We will arrange a date for the grievance hearing to take place. If your chosen representative cannot attend on the date proposed, you can propose an alternative time and date so long as it is reasonable and falls within 5 working days after the date initially proposed by us. Your chosen representative will be able to address the hearing, put forward your case, sum it up, respond to any views expressed at the hearing and confer with you, but cannot answer questions on your behalf. If you do not comply with this procedure you may lose your right to be accompanied by your chosen representative. You will not have the right to be accompanied by your chosen representative if your grievance is dealt with informally.

This policy forms part of the terms and conditions of your employment. The consumption of alcohol is not allowed while on duty and you must not be under the influence of alcohol at any time while on duty. If a customer offers to buy you a drink, you must politely refuse explaining that drinking on duty is not allowed. Any unauthorised consumption of alcohol on duty will be treated as gross misconduct as will reporting for duty under the influence of alcohol and will lead to disciplinary action being instigated. Employees must not consume alcohol on Company premises at the end of their shift in the bar, restaurant or back of house areas. The Company will allow restricted consumption of alcohol on Company premises if authorised by a senior manager e.g. General Manager or Company Director. Employees are allowed to consume alcohol on Company premises if they have made a restaurant booking via the Guest Operations Manager and are off duty. If a restaurant reservation is made employees must be aware that appropriate behaviour is expected from the employee and their guests while on Company premises and any breach in this could result in the employee being liable for the consequences caused by themselves’ or his/her guests and could result in disciplinary action being instigated. If the Company holds a social event on or off Company premises, employees attending that are off duty are authorised to consume reasonable levels of alcohol at the event but must not become intoxicated to the level that they become abusive, aggressive or offensive, to fellow employees of the Company or any external members of the public potentially bringing the Company’s name into disrepute.

Such inappropriate behaviour will lead to disciplinary action being instigated and could lead to the employee being dismissed.

DRINKING AT COMPANY EVENTS OR ENTERTAINING CLIENTS / SUPPLIERS If you attend evening social events and dinners on the Company’s business you may drink alcohol with the permission of your Line Manager, but should do so in moderation and to the degree that it does not adversely impact upon your behaviour and the reputation of the Company.

USE OF ILLEGAL SUBSTANCES Illegal substances in any form are not allowed on Company premises. You are prohibited from using, possessing, transferring, selling, purchasing, or being under the influence of drugs at any time while on duty. The use of illegal substances is not allowed while on duty and anyone found to be taking any illegal substances, or found to be under the influence during their shift or when they arrive at work, will be suspended from work and disciplinary action will be instigated which could lead to dismissal. If an employee has been prescribed medication by their Doctor that could impair their ability to perform their duties while at work he/she must inform their Line Manager prior to commencing their shift to ensure that any health and safety implications are considered. Any instructions or guidance then provided by the Manager must be followed by the employee. If an employee believes they have an alcohol or drug dependency that is affecting their ability to perform their duties at work they should inform their Line Manager or HR and the Company will aim to provide reasonable assistance.

SMOKING Smoking is prohibited throughout the workplace. Members of staff are prohibited from smoking in any area of the restaurant or offices or any area within the boundaries of the restaurant. All staff are required to ensure the external premises remains tidy and free from cigarette debris.

CONDUCT OUTSIDE WORK If your activities outside working hours are likely to reflect badly on the reputation of the Company, or affect your employment in any way, then disciplinary action may be instigated which could lead to the termination of your employment. Behaving inappropriately while in uniform and/or while at any event/in a situation which is connected to work, may lead to disciplinary action being instigated, and depending on the seriousness of such behaviour it could lead to dismissal from the Company.

SECURITY The Company takes all possible precautions to keep intruders out and to safeguard its own and employees property. The effectiveness of precautions depends on the co-operation of everyone. It is your responsibility to look after your own possessions and the Companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s equipment in your care and to see that no valuables or confidential documents are left unattended. We recommend that you do not bring valuable items to work, as the Company will not be responsible for your personal belongings.

RIGHT TO SEARCH The Company reserves the right to carry out searches of lockers, bags, vehicles, in your presence, without prior notice being given. Refusing to allow a search may be treated as gross misconduct. You will have the right to be accompanied by a fellow colleague should you wish.

CASH, STOCK AND PROPERTY

INVITE TO EVENTS - DISCLOSURE

You are responsible for any cash, stock and property, which is entrusted to you during your work and for ensuring that it is maintained correctly. Failure to do so may lead to disciplinary action being instigated.

If an employee is invited to a corporate hospitality event by a supplier or potential supplier of the company they must notify the HR Director or Managing Director prior to accepting such an invitation. If the HR Director or Managing Director authorise the employee to attend the event the employee can accept the invitation.

KEYS If you are responsible for handling keys you must ensure their safe keeping at all times. Keys must never be left unattended or given to unauthorised people. All keys must be correctly deposited at the end of your shift according to the procedure shown to you at your departmental induction. You must not remove keys off the Company premises.

If authorisation is not provided the employee must not attend the event under any circumstances. It is imperative that all employees adhere to the guidelines detailed above to ensure the company and employees do not contravene the obligations under the Bribery Act 2010.

INTERNET AND EMAIL POLICY POLICY ON ACCEPTING GIFTS In general, the company does not believe that it is appropriate for employees to accept gifts from customers, suppliers or any other person or organisation with which the Company has (or might have) business connections. We wish to ensure that no employee acts in any way that is inconsistent with our objectives or with the integrity of the business by accepting a gift in circumstances where it could influence, or be seen to influence, that employee’s business actions or decisions.

RECEIPT OF GIFTS - DISCLOSURE Any employee who receives a gift of any kind from an existing or potential business contact must disclose the fact of the gift, its nature and the identity of the sender to the HR Director or Managing Director. If the gift is anything other than a small token of appreciation having no substantial financial value, the employee will be required to return the gift to the sender explaining that it is the company’s policy that employees should not receive gifts.

This policy applies to all employees and users of the Company’s computer systems and equipment (including laptops), regardless of where the individual is located at the time. This policy forms part of the terms and conditions of your employment. The Internet and e-mail are essentially communication tools for carrying out business and should only be used as such. The e-mail system, e-mails and Internet access are the sole property of the Company and may be monitored at any time, without prior warning.

USE OF E-MAIL The e-mail system is available for business related purposes only and must not be used for personal use. You should avoid communicating sensitive business information in written form over the e-mail system. It must not be used for a purpose detrimental to your job responsibilities, for spreading gossip, or for personal gain or in breach of any of the Company’s standard employment policies on issues such as sexual harassment. Always check the contents and addresses of the e-mail being sent before pressing send to avoid errors. Incorrect or improper statements can give rise to personal or Company liability in the

same way as the contents of letters and faxes. You should note that any messages that are deleted by the user will disappear from access for that individual; however they are retained on the central system. No personal use must be made of the e-mail system including the sending of attachments. Employees should not attach any files that may contain a virus to emails. The Company has virus checking in place but if in doubt employees should check with the IT Manager. Employees should exercise extreme care when receiving emails with attachments from third parties, particularly unidentified parties, as these may contain viruses. Should you receive an e-mail message which has been wrongly delivered to your e-mail address you should notify the sender of the message by redirecting the message to that person. Further in the event that the e-mail message contains confidential information you must not disclose or use that confidential information. Should you receive an e-mail, which contravenes this policy, the e-mail should be brought to the attention of your Manager. Under no circumstances must emails/attachments be sent to a personal email address.

EMAIL SIGNATURE The Company applies a default email signature that all employees must use. This is automatically set up by the IT Manager when a new user is added to the Company email system. No variations should be made to this email signature unless authorised by the Operations Director or HR Director.

REMOTE ACCESS OF EMAIL Employees may access their Company email account on their personal mobile phones or via Outlook web mail however please ensure when doing so you have a security lock on your personal mobile phone / android to minimise any unauthorised access of Company emails.

USE OF THE INTERNET

Any deliberate activities with any of the following characteristics:

Access to the Internet is available on all Company computers and laptops but this access can be withdrawn at any time by the Company. The internet should be used for business usage only. There is much data on the Internet that is illegal to view, possess or download in the UK. Also there are laws relating to professional conduct in the workplace e.g. sexual harassment. It is therefore your responsibility to adhere to the law when connected to the Internet.

• • •

In this way, if you use the Internet for personal purposes, you do so on the basis that you accept all responsibility and liability for any purchases, transactions and actions. The Company shall have no responsibility for any damages whatsoever for any reason arising out of your use of the Internet for personal use. As well as this the following subjects are all banned from use from any work terminal within the Company in connection to the Internet or e-mail: • • • •

• • • • •

• •

•

Any site that contains sexual/ obscene content Any sites that offer gambling facilities Any sites that offer downloaded materials You must not download iTunes onto a Company computer nor store personal songs and/or pictures on the Company server Any sites that offer games Any chat rooms, or shopping sites such as e.g. ebay Any hate groups, or discrimination web sites Any chain e-mails, jokes, media clips Any forms of moving data (e.g. contracts, accounts information) from the Company’s internal e-mail system to an employee’s personal e-mail address. Any material that could be viewed as condoning unlawful activities. Any material that relates to harassment on the grounds of race, sex, marital status, colour, ethnic or national origin, nationality, religion, disability or sexual orientation. Transmission of material that infringes the copyright of another person or company

Violating the privacy of other users Distributing the work of other users Other misuse i.e. the introduction of viruses

The above list is not exhaustive. Misuse of the Company’s Internet or email facilities will be viewed as potential gross misconduct which could result in dismissal. In some instances it may also be a criminal offence, warranting a report to the police. If by accident you log into an inappropriate site before realising the true nature of the site you should immediately log out of it. You must also disclose this accidental access to the HR Department in confidence. The Company may at its discretion bar certain Internet access.

MONITORING As the computers, networks and the email system are the Company’s property, all copies of messages created, sent, received or stored on our systems shall remain the Company’s property. Email and Internet access will be monitored by the Company to assess the correct and appropriate usage as per the policy. Failure to adhere to the policy may result in disciplinary action. You must note that all deleted emails from your system remain on the server and that information on each website accessed by each user can be traced. All emails sent on the Company’s systems are open to investigation by the Company. The Company will conduct email sweeps, or access emails either at random or as part of the investigation from time to time to see if the use of the email system is legitimate, to find lost messages or to retrieve messages lost due to computer failure, to assist in the investigations of wrongful acts, or to comply with any legal obligation.

Your inbox may be checked in the event of your absence from work due to holidays or otherwise. The IT Manager may monitor the use of the Internet and contents of emails for propriety and for capacity, security and audit purposes. Therefore any material, which employees send or receive on email, is expressly on the condition that they consent to it being open for access by the Company. The Company’s permission to make use of Internet access on its systems is expressly on the understanding that by you continuing to use the systems you consent to the Company having access to and being able to view all the material on the Internet accessed by you. The Company also has the right to review all employees’ use of the computer system, including the content of their network drives. You must therefore expect that the Company may be aware of every instance of computer usage. If at any time you are in doubt regarding the extent or content of usage you should consult the Human Resources Department.

ARCHIVING EMAILS To ensure that the email system works at optimum levels each user will be required to archive emails when their inbox gets to 1GB. You will be notified when your inbox is reaching the limit and will be asked to archive your files which you must do as you will not be able to receive or send emails if you exceed the maximum storage limit.

GENERAL COMPUTER USAGE • • •

•

You will be prompted to change your password every 90 days to ensure security of all Company data. Your password must be a minimum of 8 characters using a combination of numbers and letters. You must keep your password secure and not disclose it to anyone without the prior authority of the HR Director. If for any reason you believe your password has become known to others you should change it directly and notify the IT Manager as soon as possible. No software must be installed or downloaded on a Company computer without gaining authorisation from the

•

Operations Director or HR Director. You must secure your computer when not using it. It will be assumed that any activities carried out on your computer under your user log in are conducted by you. An employee who has been authorised to use Skype as a communication business tool must ensure that they act professionally and appropriately at all times when using this tool, failure to do so will result in the software being taken off their computer, and potential disciplinary action being instigated.

MOBILE EQUIPMENT The purpose of this policy is to establish the criteria governing the authorised use of Company-owned mobile telephones, blackberry’s, laptops and tablet devices where the user has established access to the Company’s IT Systems enabling them to send and receive work-related email messages and conduct other company business. Employees who have been issued with mobile equipment (including but not limited to a laptop or blackberry) must ensure that it is kept secure at all times, especially when travelling. Passwords must be used to secure access to data kept on such equipment to ensure that confidential data is protected in the event that the machine is lost or stolen. If the equipment is ever lost, stolen or faulty this must be reported immediately. All wireless access to the Company Network must only be through company approved mobile devices, products and security configurations. Company owned mobile phones and laptops are the only devices that have been approved and authorized for use on the Company Network. All company devices must have a PIN number or password in order to activate the device prior to use. Memory cards should also be encrypted. Only company-provided laptops and other mobile devices including mobile phones, blackberry’s and tablets may be used

remotely and these should be encrypted.

WI-FI ACCESS TO CORPORATE NETWORK It is forbidden to connect to the Company Wi-Fi network with a personally owned device although personal devices may be connected to the guest WI-FI network where available.

USER RESPONSIBILITY As a user of company mobile devices, you agree to a general code of conduct that recognizes the need to protect confidential data that is stored on, or accessed using, a mobile device. This code of conduct includes but is not limited to: • • • • • • • • •

Doing what is necessary to ensure the adequate physical security of the device Maintaining the software configuration of the device – both the operating system and the applications installed. Preventing the storage of sensitive company data in unapproved applications on the device. Ensuring the device’s security controls are not subverted via hacks, jailbreaks, security software changes and/or security Reporting a lost or stolen device immediately Company IT Services Support Responsibility

The following services related to the use of a personal smartphone or tablet are provided by Company IT Services: • • • •

Enabling the device to access the web-based interface of the email system. Enabling the device to access the web-based application system. Email, Calendar and Contact Sync service configuration. Wi-Fi Internet Access configuration.

SECURITY POLICY REQUIREMENTS The user is responsible for securing their device to prevent sensitive data from being lost or compromised and to prevent viruses from being spread. Removal of security controls is prohibited. All users are forbidden from copying sensitive data from email, calendar and contact applications to other applications on the device or to an unregistered personally owned device.

ENFORCEMENT Any user found to have violated this policy may be subject to disciplinary action, including but not limited to: • • • •

Account suspension Revocation of device access to the Company System Data removal from the device Dismissal

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY For the purposes of this policy, social media is a type of interactive online media that allows parties to communicate instantly with each other or to share data in a public forum. This includes online social forums such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Social media also covers blogs and video - and imagesharing websites such as YouTube and Flickr. Employees should be aware that there are many more examples of social media than can be listed here and this is a constantly changing area. Employees should follow these guidelines in relation to any social media that they use.

USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA AT WORK

EXCESSIVE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA AT WORK

•

Employees in the restaurant responsible for the Company Twitter account must not post any vacancies in the restaurant as this will be managed by the HR Department. In addition all twitter communications must be engaging and relevant for the audience being communicated to, back of house information (ie; food, service, event, guest’s information) must not be tweeted. If you are unsure about the appropriateness of any tweets please contact the HR Director or Operations Director.

Employees should not spend an excessive amount of time while at work using social media websites for personal use. They should ensure that use of social media does not interfere with their work duties and responsibilities. If it is found that an employees work is being affected they will not be allowed to use social media while at work.

•

The company understands that employees may wish to use their own computers or devices, such as laptops and palm-top and hand-held devices, to access social media websites while they are at work. Employees must limit their use of social media on their own equipment to their official rest breaks such as their lunch break/times.

MONITORING USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA DURING WORK TIME The company reserves the right to monitor employees’ internet usage, but will endeavour to inform an affected employee when this is to happen and the reasons for it. The company considers that valid reasons for checking an employee’s internet usage include suspicions that the employee has:

been using social media websites when he/she should be working; or acted in a way that is in breach of the rules set out in this policy.

The company reserves the right to retain information that it has gathered on employees’ use of the internet for a period of one year. Access to particular social media websites on Company equipment may be withdrawn in any case of misuse.

SOCIAL MEDIA IN YOUR PERSONAL LIFE The company recognises that many employees make use of social media in a personal capacity. While they are not acting on behalf of the company, employees must be aware that they

can damage the company if they are recognised as being one of our employees. Employees should therefore ensure that their profile and any content posted are consistent with the professional image represented to clients and colleagues.

breach copyright, for example by: • •

Employees are allowed to say that they work for the company, which recognises that it is natural for its staff sometimes to want to discuss their work on social media. However, the employee’s online profile (for example, the name of a blog or a Twitter name) must not contain the company’s name. If employees do discuss their work on social media (for example, giving opinions on their specialism or the sector in which the company operates), they must include on their profile a statement along the following lines: “The views I express here are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.” Employees should write in the first person and use a personal email address.

using someone else’s images or written content without permission; or failing to give acknowledgement where permission has been given to reproduce something; or

do anything that could be considered discriminatory against, or bullying or harassment of, any individual, for example by: •

• •

making offensive or derogatory comments relating to sex, gender reassignment, race (including nationality), disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief or age; using social media to bully another individual (such as an employee of the company); or posting images that are discriminatory or offensive [or links to such content];

Social media should never be used in any way that breaches any of the Company’s other policies. If an internet post would breach any of our policies in another forum, it will breach them in an online forum. For example, employees are prohibited from using social media if it has the effect of: a) b) c)

Breach this social media policy; Harass or bully other employees in any way; or Breach the Company’s Equal Opportunities Policy.

If an employee is unclear about any elements within this policy they should contact the HR Department.

RETIREMENT POLICY

Any communications that employees make in a personal capacity through social media must not:

•

use any of the Company’s logos, brand names, slogans or other trademarks;

The Company does not operate a compulsory retirement age for its employees.

bring the company into disrepute, for example by:

•

be used for the purpose of providing references (without prior permission from the Company) for other individuals on social and professional networking sites, as such references both positive and negative, can be attributed to the Company and create legal liability for both the author of the reference and the Company.

The Company is committed to equal opportunities for all its employees. The Company recognises the contributions of a diverse workforce, including the skills and experience of older employees. It believes that employees should, wherever possible, be permitted to continue working for as long as they wish to do so. The Company operates a flexible retirement policy and employees may voluntarily retire at a time of their choosing.

• • •

criticising or arguing with customers, colleagues or rivals; making defamatory comments about individuals or other companies or groups; or posting images that are inappropriate or links to inappropriate content;

breach confidentiality, for example by: • •

•

revealing trade secrets or information owned by the company; giving away confidential information about an individual (such as a colleague or customer contact) or company (such as a rival business); or discussing the company’s internal workings (such as deals that it is doing with a customer/client or its future business plans that have not been communicated to the public);

All employees are responsible for protecting the Company’s reputation. If you see content in social media that disparages or reflects poorly on the Company or its clients or customers, you should report it to your Manager.

DISCIPLINARY ACTION OVER SOCIAL MEDIA USE All employees are required to adhere to this policy. Employees should note that any breaches of this policy may lead to disciplinary action. Serious breaches of this policy, for example incidents of bullying of colleagues or social media activity causing serious damage to the company, may constitute gross misconduct and lead to summary dismissal.

RETIREMENT PROCEDURE If an employee has decided that he/she wishes to retire, he/she should inform their Line Manager in writing as far in advance as possible and, in any event, in accordance with his/her notice period as set out in his/her contract of employment. This will assist the Company with its succession planning. The Company will write to the employee acknowledging the employee’s notice to retire.

The Company will arrange a meeting with the employee to discuss arrangements for retirement, including the intended retirement date, succession and handover plans, pension details and phased retirement, if applicable.

TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT AND NOTICE The length of notice that you or the Company must give in writing to terminate your employment is stated in your Contract of Employment. The Company reserves the right to make a payment in lieu of notice for the whole or part of your notice period. The first 12 weeks of your employment shall comprise a probationary period during which one week’s notice in writing by the Company to you or by you to the Company is required to terminate your employment, unless your contract of employment states other. You will be required to return all Company information and property on or before your leave date and your final salary payment will not be made until all property is returned.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES The Company is an equal opportunities employer and operates a zero tolerance policy in respect of any form of discrimination, harassment and/or bullying regardless of whether it is technically unlawful. This means that it is the Company’s policy that there should be no discrimination, harassment or less favourable treatment or victimisation of any employee, job applicant, customer, provider of services or member of the public either directly or indirectly on the grounds of: • • • • • • •

race, nationality or ethnic origin; gender, gender reassignment, marital or family status; disability; trade union membership or activity; sexual orientation; religion or religious beliefs; and age.

This also includes less favourable treatment of an individual who is associated with an individual or group with one of the above protected characteristics. It also includes less favourable treatment of an individual based on a perceived connection with the above characteristics.

THE LAW RECOGNISES VARIOUS FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION: DIRECT DISCRIMINATION

This occurs when an individual is treated less favourably than another in relation to employment on discriminatory grounds.

INDIRECT DISCRIMINATION

This occurs when a job requirement criterion or practice is applied equally to all applicants or employees but it has a disproportionate and detrimental effect on one section of the workforce, because fewer of that group can comply with it, and the requirement cannot be justified in relation to the job. Examples of indirect discrimination may include insisting on certain qualifications which are not essential to the performance of a job.

FAILURE TO MAKE REASONABLE ADJUSTMENTS

If an applicant or employee has a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities, then the Company must make any reasonable adjustments to its premises or any arrangements made which would otherwise put the individual at a substantial disadvantage.

individual. Harassment may be open or covert, direct or indirect, an isolated incident or a series of repeated actions. It may also include, in certain circumstances, off-duty conduct. It is the duty and responsibility of the Company and every employee to take reasonable steps to stop all types of harassment and discrimination in the workplace. It is only through the efforts of individual employees that harassment and discrimination can be eradicated. Every employee in the Company has the right not to be subject to any form of unlawful harassment or discrimination. Examples of harassment may include: • abusive or insensitive language, or pranks; • name calling or comments about an individual’s physical appearance; • the display or circulation of offensive written or visual material, or graffiti; • physical threats, assault, or insulting behaviour; • open hostility towards workers of a particular group, including organised hostility in the workplace; • exclusion from normal workplace conversation or social events i.e. being “frozen-out”; • inappropriate assumptions about the capabilities of an individual. The above examples are not exhaustive and each incident will be viewed on its individual facts.

VICTIMISATION

Victimisation occurs when a member of staff treats an existing or former member of staff less favourably because: •

•

HARASSMENT

Harassment is unwanted and unwelcome behaviour which an individual may find offensive, which causes him to feel threatened, humiliated, patronised or harassed and creates an intimidating, hostile or humiliating work environment for the

•

that other person has in good faith brought proceedings alleging that he has been unlawfully discriminated against; or has indicated that he/she intends to make such a claim or claims; or he/she has assisted a colleague to make such a claim, whether or not that claim is accepted as having any merit.

It will not necessarily be a defence that such incidents consist of words or behaviour which might be claimed to be “common place” or which were intended as a joke or were not intended to be offensive. However, nothing in this policy takes away a managers right to manage, including the imposition of reasonable pressure to perform or behave to an acceptable standard and where appropriate, of disciplinary sanctions. Where the manager’s conduct is a reasonable response to a perceived problem this will not constitute bullying or harassment notwithstanding that this response may cause an employee to feel under threat or otherwise distressed. In issuing this policy, the Company has three main objectives: •

• •

to encourage its employees to take an active role in combating all forms of unlawful harassment and discrimination; to deter employees from participating in unlawful harassment or discriminatory behaviour; and to demonstrate to all employees that they can rely upon the Company’s support in cases of unlawful harassment or discrimination at work.

The Company is fully committed to providing a good and harmonious working environment that offers equal treatment and equal opportunities for all its employees and where every employee is treated with appropriate respect and dignity. All employees will be made aware of the requirements of this policy and will be obliged to co-operate to ensure that the policy is carried out effectively. The Company recognises that the provision of equal opportunities in the workplace is not only good management practice but that it also makes sound business sense. The Company’s equal opportunities policy is designed to help all employees develop their full potential and to ensure so far as practicable that the talents and resources of the workforce are fully utilised to maximise the efficiency of the organisation. However, no policy of this sort can properly accommodate all possible circumstances and therefore this document should be seen as creating guidelines only and not contractual obligations on the part of the Company.

Whilst the Company recognises that the overall responsibility for the effective operation of this policy lies with the Board of Directors, all employees, whatever their position within the Company, have some measure of responsibility for ensuring its effective implementation. In this respect, employees should ensure that:

All interviews will be conducted in accordance with the terms and spirit of this policy. The questions asked of candidates will be closely related to the selection criteria and will be asked in order to elicit information which will give a fair assessment of that particular applicant’s ability (technical and non-technical) to perform the tasks required by the vacancy.

•

No one sector of the population will be deliberately disadvantaged or discriminated against in relation to the terms of employment offered or applied to them. When aware of the need to do so, the Company will make reasonable adjustments to its arrangements for interviews and to conditions of employment for disabled applicants to ensure so far as practicable that existing arrangements or conditions of employment do not place such applicants at an unjustified and significant disadvantage relative to other applicants.

• •

they co-operate with any measures introduced to develop equal opportunities; they refrain from taking discriminatory actions or decisions which are contrary to either the letter or spirit of this policy; they do not harass, abuse or intimidate other employees, job applicants, customers, providers of services or members of the public in a manner contrary to either the letter or the spirit of this policy; they do not instruct, induce, or attempt to induce or pressurise other employees to act in breach of this policy; they advise the Company if they are aware of any discriminatory conduct, either against themselves or any third party contrary to the spirit of this policy, so that the Company can take steps to deal with it at an early stage.

Breaches of the Company’s equal opportunities policy and procedures will usually result in the Company’s disciplinary procedure being invoked against the individual responsible. In serious cases the perpetrator may be dismissed.

RECRUITMENT No vacancy will be advertised or publicised (internally or externally) in a way which discourages viable applications from any sector of the population. All applications will be considered on merit. Each individual will be assessed so far as practicable against a set of objective, non-discriminatory criteria which will be directly related to the demands of the particular vacancy. All advertisements, application forms and other recruitment material will clearly state that the Company is an equal opportunities employer.

If there is a genuine and lawful reason for limiting the vacancy to a particular group, this will be clearly stated together with the grounds for it, on any advertisements. The Company retains the discretion to invite applications from individuals whose jobs may be at risk of redundancy, or who are being redeployed for health and safety reasons before advertising any post more widely. However, internal candidates for a particular post will not be preferred to more suitable external applicants.

PROMOTION Applicants for promotion will be considered only on the basis of their skill, aptitude, availability, experience and general overall suitability for the vacancy. All decisions about an individual’s promotion will be made in accordance with the objective selection criteria outlined in the job specification.

TRAINING The Company recognises that training is an important factor leading to equal opportunities at work. It will encourage employees to increase awareness, knowledge, and skills for implementation of this policy.

As a means of encouraging a favourable working environment, equal opportunities will be part of the induction for all new staff.

POST TERMINATION The Company will not unlawfully discriminate against any individual after his employment has terminated. Employees are reminded that they are expected to treat exemployees in accordance with the spirit of this policy. Informal “references” or opinions about ex-employees must not be made or given to third parties under any circumstances. All requests from third parties for information about an ex-employee MUST be referred to HR.

CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROTECTION This policy forms part of the terms and conditions of your employment. During your employment with the Company, in addition to confidential information you may have access to information which though not strictly confidential in a legal sense, would be valuable or of interest to the media. You acknowledge that this includes details of the behavior and/or lifestyles of Gordon Ramsay and his family and friends (the “Ramsays”). No information about the Company, the Group or the Ramsays should be divulged to the press or any other outside organization or person unless you have been authorized to do so. You agree that you will not during or after your employment, publish or cause to be published in any media of any kind (including without limitation any newspaper, magazine or on any internet website or similar medium or social media platform such as twitter, facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc) whether now known or subsequently invented, any photograph, image,

audio, audio-visual recording, text or other material or give any radio, press, television or other media interview insofar as the same may be intended to refer to your employment and/or the business, personal affairs or activities of the company, the Group and/or the Ramsays. When in a public place, if you are discussing the business affairs concerning the Company, the Group and/or the Ramsays, you should ensure that your conversation cannot be overheard.

processing personal information. These principles are: • •

•

CONTACT WITH THE PRESS Employees must not make any unauthorised statements relating to the affairs of the Company or its employees or customers either orally, in writing or via other means. Only authorised individuals will be allowed to deal with the press. Any employee found to pass on any Company information to any individual outside the Company will potentially face disciplinary action, which depending on the seriousness of the breach of contract could lead to dismissal.

• •

•

DATA PROTECTION POLICY STATEMENT It is the policy of the Company to take all necessary steps to ensure that personal data held by the Company about its employees, customers, suppliers and all other individuals is processed fairly and lawfully. The Company will take all necessary steps to implement this policy. It is the policy of the Company to ensure that all relevant statutory requirements are complied with and that the Company’s internal procedures are monitored periodically to ensure compliance. The Company will implement and comply with the eight Data Protection Principles contained in the Data Protection Act 1998 (“the Act”) which promote good conduct in relation to

Personal data shall be processed fairly and lawfully. Personal data shall be obtained only for one or more specified and lawful purpose, and shall not be further processed in any manner incompatible with that purpose or those purposes. Personal data shall be adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purpose or purposes for which they are processed. Personal data shall be accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date. Personal data processed for any purpose or purposes shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose or those purposes. Personal data shall be processed in accordance with the rights of data subjects under the Act. Appropriate technical and organisational measures shall be taken against unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data and against accidental loss or destruction or damage to, personal data. Personal data shall not be transferred to a country or territory outside the European Economic Area unless that country or territory ensures an adequate level of protection for the rights and freedoms of data subjects in relation to the processing of personal data.

The Company has a responsibility to ensure that personal data dealt with in the course of the Company’s business is handled in accordance the Act and reasonable steps will be taken by all concerned to ensure this duty is observed. The Company will consult with its employees periodically to ascertain what measures should be taken to increase awareness of data protection issues and to ensure that all necessary measures are taken to make this policy effective. The Company will take such measures as may be necessary to ensure the proper training, supervision and instruction of all relevant employees in matters pertaining to data protection and to provide any necessary information. The Company will monitor on an on-going basis compliance by third party processors of the Company’s data in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

RESPONSIBILITY Data protection is a responsibility shared by all employees of the Company. You are expected to familiarise yourself with and observe at all times the Company’s rules and procedures relating to data protection, the Data Protection policy statement and any additional instructions which may be issued from time to time. The person having overall responsibility for data protection within the Company will be the Data Protection Compliance Officer, details of whom can be obtained from the HR Department. Each manager and supervisor will have responsibility for data protection matters in his/her own immediate area of work. It is your responsibility to ensure that all personal data provided by you to the Company is accurate and updated when appropriate.

PROCESSING PERSONAL DATA The Company will hold personal data about its employees in its manual and automated filing systems. Personal data (including sensitive data) may be processed for the purposes of: • • • • • • • • • •

•

salary administration; pension administration; health administration; health insurance/benefits; training and appraisal including performance records; disciplinary and grievance records; Company car fleet/leasing administration; any Company benefit administration; marketing of products and services to employees; where the nature of an employee’s employment may make it necessary or desirable for the benefit of the Company, personal information relating to that employee may be disclosed for marketing and/or PR purposes and in connection with the performance of that employee’s duties; any potential sale of shares of the Company or other changes of control or any potential transfer of an employee’s employment under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981. Disclosure may include, in the case of sale, change of control or transfer, disclosure to the potential purchaser or investor and their advisors; and

•

defending any threatened or actual legal proceedings, whether in the UK, USA or any other territory.

In certain circumstances the Company is required to obtain your consent to process your personal data. From time to time, the Company will also need to process sensitive personal data about its employees. Such data is broadly defined as including details of an individual’s ethnic or racial origins, political opinions, religious or other beliefs, trade union membership, physical or mental health, or data relating to the commission (or alleged commission) of any criminal offence or convictions. Your explicit consent is needed to process this data.

•

• Your consent to the processing of data will have been obtained by the Company prior to the commencement of your employment or as part of the Company’s ongoing data protection compliance. You will be informed where data needs to be processed for additional purposes, and you will be informed of: • •

the purpose or purposes for which the data is intended to be processed; and the identify of the Company’s nominated representative [Data Protection Compliance Officer];

SECURITY OF DATA Employees who are required as part of their job description to process personal data about employees or customers will receive training and guidance on the security of data to ensure that all data is processed fairly and lawfully. However, the Company expects all of its employees to be aware of the basic principles as set out in this policy. In particular employees should be aware of the following: • •

•

All personal data held by the Company must be treated as strictly confidential. Personal data must not be disclosed to anyone outside the Company unless the individual concerned has consented in writing to such disclosure, or the Data Protection Compliance Officer has given you a specific instruction to do so. Personal data must be kept secure at all times. Personal

data must not be left unattended unless it has been placed in a secure location. Relevant employees will be advised by the Data Protection Compliance Officer of the physical security of arrangements to be adopted appropriate to the level of confidentiality of the personal data concerned. Personal data must not be copied (whether on computer, media, photocopies, computer print outs, or otherwise) without documented authorisation from your supervisor. Personal data must not be removed or transferred from the Company’s premises (whether on computer media, in hard copy form, or otherwise) without documented authorisation from your supervisor. It is the responsibility of all employees to report all security breaches, or suspected security breaches, relating to unauthorised access to, or disclosure of personal data, to the Data Protection Compliance Officer.

Breach of these guidelines may lead to disciplinary action and depending on the seriousness of the breach, may lead to summary dismissal. Breach of these guidelines may also constitute a criminal offence.

WHISTLE BLOWING POLICY The Whistle Blowing Policy provides a facility for you to disclose, through appropriate channels, any incidence of malpractice or wrongdoing by a current or ex-employee, without fear of personal detriment or victimisation. Examples are: • • •

Actions that are deemed to be a criminal offence. Failure to comply with legal obligations. Health and safety risks to individuals.

If you raise a concern about malpractice this should be done in good faith, without any malicious intent or financial gain. A concern should be raised through your line manager or any senior manager in whom you feel able to confide. Whilst it is not necessary that colleagues prove the breach or failure that they are alleging has occurred or is likely to occur, but may simply raise reasonable suspicion, they should note that they will not be protected from the consequences of making such a disclosure if by doing so they commit a criminal offence or if they make the disclosure motivated by a reason which is not in good faith.

Appraisal & evaluations

DOCUMENTED PROBATION REVIEW AT 30 DAYS (1 MONTH)

NAME

DISCUSSION POINT/TOPIC

NOTES/COMMENTS

ROLE START DATE RATING

PROBATION END DATE TODAY’S DATE

DISCUSSION POINT/TOPIC

NOTES/COMMENTS

RATING

DISCUSSION POINT/TOPIC

RATING

NOTES/COMMENTS

EMPLOYEE’S VIEW ON THE ROLE AND WORK ENVIRONMENT

OBJECTIVES/TARGETS AGREED TO WORK TOWARDS

MANAGER SIGNATURE

MANAGER SIGNED

EMPLOYEE SIGNATURE

EMPLOYEE SIGNED

DOCUMENTED PROBATION REVIEW AT 90 DAYS (3 MONTHS) EMPLOYEE’S FEEDBACK AND ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS NAME ROLE START DATE PROBATION END DATE TODAY’S DATE

HAS THE EMPLOYEE MET THE REQUIRED STANDARDS OF THE ROLE? YES

If yes, can you verbally sign them off as a permanent member of the team.

IF THE STANDARDS HAVE NOT BEEN MET, WILL THE PROBATION PERIOD BE EXTENDED? YES

If yes, contact your HR manager with revised probation end date (up to 3 months) and agree objectives.

YOUR SUMMARY OF EMPLOYEE’S PERFORMANCESINCE 30 DAY REVIEW

IF THE EMPLOYEE HAS NOT PASSED THEIR PROBATION PERIOD BUT THE PROBATION WILL NOT BE EXTENDED, CONTACT YOU HR MANAGER AND STATE WHY HERE

IF THE EMPLOYEE’S PROBATION IS EXTENDED, PLEASE SIGN THEM OFF AT AN ADDITIONAL REVIEW MEETING WITH ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS HERE

MANAGER SIGNATURE

MANAGER SIGNED

EMPLOYEE SIGNATURE

EMPLOYEE SIGNED

180 DAY EMPLOYEE EVALUATION (6 MONTHS) WHAT DOES THE EMPLOYEE NEED TO CONTINUE DOING? NAME ROLE START DATE PROBATION END DATE TODAY’S DATE

WHAT DOES THE EMPLOYEE NEED TO START DOING?

WHAT DOES THE EMPLOYEE NEED TO STOP DOING?

HOW DOES THE EMPLOYEE WANT TO DEVELOP? WHERE DO THEY SEE THEMSELVES IN 6 MONTHS’ TIME?

MANAGER SIGNATURE

MANAGER SIGNED OBJECTIVES/TARGETS AGREED TO WORK TOWARDS

EMPLOYEE SIGNATURE

EMPLOYEE SIGNED

Employee notes & comments

EMPLOYEE NOTES & COMMENTS