Equality Policy

Our Commitment – Kontotronics is working towards equal opportunities to ensure that the way we deliver services and provide employment is fair for everyone. We will endeavour to treat all people equally and fairly whether they are:

  • Seeking employment with Kontotronics or are already employees
  • Persons affected by the activities of Kontotronics
  • Users of, or potential users of, our services
  • Contracting to supply services or goods
  • Seeking assistance from us

Our Equalities Policy aims to ensure that no individual receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of gender, race, creed, nationality, disability, age (subject to normal retirement age and restrictions on the employment of young people), marital status, sexual preference, religious or political beliefs, or responsibility for dependants, and that there are no conditions or requirements which cannot be shown to be justified. Kontotronics will seek to identify and act upon any unfair or unlawful discrimination that denies individual opportunity on any of the criteria mentioned above. Employees and prospective employees have the right to complain about unfair discrimination through the appropriate procedures.

Our Aim As An Employer

We will aim for fair and equal opportunity in all areas of employment, including recruitment and selection, personal assessment, training, promotion and career development. We will keep our recruitment and selection procedures under review to ensure that individuals are selected and promoted according to their relevant merits and abilities. We recognise that it is important that all staff, and, in particular, those who provide services to customers, and managers and supervisory staff involved with recruitment, are familiar with the Equalities Policy. Training will be provided to enable each employee to play his or her part. Job application forms used for recruitment will ask for ethnic origin and other relevant information needed for monitoring equal opportunities. Person specifications, detailing essential selection criteria, will be drawn up for all vacant posts to enhance objective selection and facilitate monitoring. The Equalities Policy will be made available to all job applicants and to all existing employees, Members and relevant organisations. We will ensure that all employees have equal access to training, career development and promotion opportunities. Complaints from employees or customers about discrimination, victimisation or harassment will be treated seriously and investigated thoroughly and promptly.

Our Aims in Providing Services

Our approach to customer service, quality and equality is relevant to all services and involves all employees. We will seek to serve all our customers and potential customers equally and fairly, and ensure that our policies and procedures do not discriminate intentionally or unintentionally against any group or individual for reasons which cannot be justified. We will try to respond to any special needs experienced by particular groups.

Who's Responsibility

Each employee and manager has a personal responsibility for ensuring that his or her behaviour is acceptable within the terms of the Equalities Policy. However, Kontotronics acknowledges that specific responsibilities fall upon managers, supervisors, and those individuals involved in recruitment and personnel administration or who receive requests for service provision. Managers will be responsible for implementing the Policy within their Departments and for ensuring that staff are familiar with, and act in accordance with, the Policy, and that adequate monitoring arrangements are in place. All aspects of the policy and procedures will be kept under review by management to ensure that they do not operate against equal opportunities. The Policy will be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure that it consistently achieves its objective. Kontotronics will ensure that information obtained from individual employees for the purpose of monitoring this policy will be used exclusively for that purpose and will be protected in line with the Data Protection Act 1998.

Awareness of Legistlation

Kontotronics is aware of the following legislation and seeks to fully abide by them:-

  1. Race Relations Act 1976
  2. Disabled Persons Act 1970, and the various amendments to the Act
  3. Equal Pay Act 1970
  4. Sex Discrimination Act 1975 (as amended in 1986)
  5. Disability Discrimination Act 1995
  6. Race Relations Amendment Act 2000
  7. The Human Rights Act 2000
  8. Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001
  9. The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003
  10. The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003. SI#1660.