Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy

Our commitment

Actors of Dionysus believe that no sections of society should be denied equality on the grounds of race, gender, marital status, caring responsibilities, disability, gender re-assignment, age, social class, sexual orientation and religion/belief or any other factor irrelevant to the purpose in view.

We are committed to providing equal opportunities in employment and to avoiding unlawful discrimination. This policy is intended to assist putting this commitment into practice. Our aim is to ensure that the work environment is free of harassment and bullying and that everyone is treated with dignity and respect, which is an important aspect of ensuring equal opportunities in employment.

We are committed to taking positive steps to ensure that:

  • We value and promote diversity, inclusion and equality of opportunity
  • We undertake the appropriate unconscious bias training to ensure good practice (last taken by our staff in March 21 at Chickenshed Theatre)
  • Our services are accessible, appropriate and delivered fairly to all
  • The mix of our employees, volunteers and management committees reflects, as far as possible, the broad mix of the population of our local community
  • We create effective partnerships with our community
  • We recognise and value the contributions that people make to aod

The law

It is unlawful to discriminate directly or indirectly in recruitment or employment because of a ‘protected characteristic’. The Equality Act defines the protected characteristics as being age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, pregnancy, maternity, race (which includes colour, nationality, caste and ethnic or national origins), sexual orientation, religion or belief, or because someone is married or in a civil partnership.

Discrimination after employment may also be unlawful, eg: refusing to give a reference for a reason related to one of the protected characteristics.

It is also unlawful to discriminate against or harass a member of the public or service user in the provision of services or goods or to fail to make reasonable adjustments to overcome barriers to using services caused by disability.

The duty to make reasonable adjustments includes the removal, adaptation or alteration of physical features, if the physical features make it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled people to make use of services. In addition, service providers have an obligation to think ahead and to address any barriers that may impede disabled people from accessing a service.

Types of unlawful discrimination

·       Direct discrimination is where a person is treated less favourably than another because of a protected characteristic. However, discrimination may be lawful if there is an occupational requirement which is core to a job role and a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

·       Indirect discrimination means putting in place a rule or policy or way of doing things that has a worse impact on someone with a protected characteristic than someone without one, when this cannot be objectively justified.

·       Harassment is where there is unwanted behaviour related to a protected characteristic (other than marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity) which has the purpose or effect of violating someone’s dignity or which creates a hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. It does not matter whether or not this effect was intended by the person responsible for the conduct.

·       Associative discrimination is where the individual treated less favourably does not have a protected characteristic but is discriminated against because of their association with someone who does, eg: the parent of a disabled child.

·       Perceptive discrimination is where the individual discriminated against or harassed does not have a protected characteristic, but they are perceived to have a protected characteristic.

·       Third-party harassment occurs where an employee is harassed by third parties such as service users, due to a protected characteristic.

·       Victimisation is treating someone unfavourably because they have taken some form of action relating to the Equality Act, eg: because they have supported a complaint or raised a grievance under the Equality Act 2010, or because they are suspected of doing so. However, an employee is not protected from victimisation if they acted maliciously or made or supported an untrue complaint.

·       Failure to make reasonable adjustments is where a rule or policy or way of doing things has a worse impact on someone with a protected characteristic compared with someone who does not have that protected characteristic, and the employer has failed to make reasonable adjustments to enable the disabled person to overcome the disadvantage.

Policy
 

This policy applies to all directors, staff, volunteers, service users and the general public.

 
  1. It is the policy of the company that:
  1. a) Individuals are recruited and trained solely on the basis of genuine job requirements, relevant experience and qualifications, talents, skills, aptitude and other objective criteria. The aim of this policy is to declare that everyone should be treated fairly and without preconceived bias or distinctions drawn on any grounds which are irrelevant to employment.
  1. b) Job descriptions will avoid any unnecessary requirements (those unrelated to effective performance) that may otherwise have deterred applicants. We will base decisions on objective criteria. We will consider making reasonable adjustments in recruitment as well as in day-to-day employment.
  1. c) Subject to the limited exceptions provided for in legislation where these are applicable, no job applicant or company member receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, social or marital status, for having responsibility for dependants or on other grounds which are deemed irrelevant to the requirements of the job.
  1. d) For disabled persons our policy is the same, subject only to genuine limitations imposed by the particular disability.
  1. It is also the policy of the company to foster tolerance, courtesy and good relations both among company members, service users and with the general public. We will not discriminate unlawfully against service users using or seeking to use the services that we provide.
  1. It is the duty of every company member (including directors, staff, volunteers) to avoid unlawful discrimination in all aspects of employment including recruitment, promotion, opportunities for training, pay and benefits, discipline and selection for redundancy, to discourage it in others and to accept personal responsibility for the implementation of this policy.
  1. Responsibility for the overall supervision, monitoring and review of the operation of this policy will rest upon the board of trustees, working together with the management team. The company will provide information and guidance to those involved in recruitment or other decision making where equal opportunities issues are likely to arise, to help them to understand their responsibilities and to avoid the risk of discrimination.

Responsibility

All staff and directors are responsible for supporting the company to meet its commitment and to avoid unlawful discrimination. If you believe that yourself, a colleague or service user has been discriminated against in any way, or if you witness what you believe to be discrimination, you should report this to the chair of the board as soon as possible. We take complaints seriously and you will not be penalised for raising a grievance, even if your grievance is not upheld, unless your complaint is both untrue and made in bad faith.

Employees can be held personally liable as well as, or instead of, the organisation for any act of unlawful discrimination. Employees who commit serious acts of harassment may be found guilty of a criminal offence. Acts of discrimination, harassment, bullying or victimisation against employees or service users are disciplinary offences and will be dealt with accordingly. Any such acts may constitute gross misconduct and could lead to dismissal without notice.

Monitoring and Review

This policy will be monitored and updated in accordance with changes in the law. We will report to the board of trustees about any actions or activities undertaken to improve equality of opportunity. Any information provided by job applicants and employees for monitoring purposes will be used only for these purposes and will be dealt with in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018.

We are committed to reviewing our policies and good practices annually.

This policy was last reviewed on: July 2024

 

This policy was created with advice and guidance from NCVO and Small Charity Support