1.1 This document sets out Kimpton’s policy on equality and equal opportunities. It is a policy statement describing the way in which equal opportunities issues are dealt with by the company as an Employer.
We believe that business is better when it also delivers economic impact through procurement, education, wellbeing and inclusion. We are passionate advocates of supporting those with additional barriers to employment by giving work experience and training which will lead to sustainable employment. We are also committed to supporting the next generation of workers by supporting colleges and schools with advice about careers within our industry.
None of this will be possible without a workforce reflecting our community who can thrive in a career with us. We are committed to providing a supportive environment that encourages learning, career development and innovation.
1.2 Kimpton has introduced this equal opportunities policy as a commitment to make full use of the talents and resources of all its employees and to provide a healthy environment which will encourage good and productive working operations within the organisation. This document describes how the policy is to be applied throughout the organisation and is subject to amendment from time to time.
1.3 Kimpton is particularly concerned that equality of opportunity is maintained in the following areas:
1.4 Kimpton aims to ensure that all managers and supervisors with responsibility for any of the areas of particular concern listed in paragraph 1.3 above are provided with the appropriate equality and equal opportunities training where necessary, which may be updated as required. Other staff may also be required to attend equal opportunities training. Attendance at training will be compulsory if you are notified that you should attend a course.
1.5 Kimpton will monitor the effectiveness of this policy to ensure that it is working in practice and will review and update this policy as and when necessary.
2.1 Kimpton’s statement of principle on equality and equal opportunities is that the company is committed to a policy of treating all its employees, workers and job applicants equally. No employee or potential employee will receive less favourable treatment because of any ‘protected characteristic’, namely;
2.2 No employee or potential employee will be disadvantaged by any conditions of employment that cannot be justified as being a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
2.3 Kimpton aims to encourage, value and manage diversity and is committed to equality for its entire staff. Kimpton wishes to attain a workforce which is representative of the communities from which it is drawn.
2.4 These principles of equality of opportunity and non-discrimination also apply to the manner in which our staff treat clients, customers, our business partners and visitors.
2.5 Employees are expected to work with the company towards these aims. In certain circumstances, an employee can be personally liable for discrimination against a fellow employee or a job applicant.
3.1 There should be no discrimination, whether direct or indirect, because of any of the protected characteristics set out in Kimpton’s statement of principle on equal opportunities contained in paragraph 1 above. The types of discrimination that are prohibited are explained at paragraph 3.2 below.
3.2 Discrimination may occur in the following forms:
3.2.1 direct discrimination — this is treating someone less favourably because of a protected characteristic. An example of this is paying someone less because of their sex or because they belong to a particular racial group. ‘Because of’ is very wide and includes less favourable treatment based on a perception of another person, for example that the person is gay, or is disabled, whether or not this perception is correct and even if the perpetrator knows that their perception is, in fact, wrong. It also includes less favourable treatment because someone is associated with another person who has a protected characteristic.
3.2.2 indirect discrimination — this is treating people in the same way but where that same treatment adversely affects those with a protected characteristic.
3.2.3 victimisation — this is treating someone less favourably because they have asserted their right not to be discriminated against because of a protected characteristic. An example of this would be an employee claiming that they had been discriminated against on the grounds of their disability and then their manager deciding not to give them a reference when they leave because they had claimed disability discrimination.
3.2.4 harassment — this is unwanted conduct, related to a protected characteristic, which has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for someone or violating their dignity. Harassment may also be of a sexual nature or may occur because someone has harassed the victim and the victim either rejects or submits to it and, because of that rejection or submission, that person treats the victim less favourably. More information on what can constitute harassment is set out in Kimpton’s Bullying and Harassment policy within this handbook.
3.3 Kimpton will appoint, train, develop, reward and promote on the basis of merit and ability.
3.4 All employees have personal responsibility for the practical application of Kimpton’s Equality and Diversity policy, which extends to the treatment of job applicants, employees (including former employees), customers/clients and visitors.
3.5 The principles set out in this policy apply:
3.5.1 in the workplace; and
3.5.2 outside the workplace in a work-related context, such as on business trips, customer or supplier events, or work-related social events and at any time while a member of staff is wearing a work uniform.
3.6 Special responsibility for the practical application of Kimpton’s equality policy falls upon managers, supervisors and staff involved in the recruitment, selection, appraisal, promotion and training of employees and the way their terms of employment are fixed.
3.7 Kimpton’s Grievance Procedure is available to any employee who believes that they may have been unfairly discriminated against. The harassment complaints procedure set out in Kimpton’s Bullying and Harassment policy is also available to any employee who believes that they may have been harassed or bullied. Employees will not be victimised in any way for making such a complaint in good faith. Complaints of this nature will be dealt with seriously, in confidence and as soon as possible.
3.8 Disciplinary action will be taken against any employee who is found to have committed an act of unlawful discrimination. Serious breaches of this policy and serious incidents of harassment and bullying will be treated as gross misconduct. Unwarranted allegations that are not made in good faith may also be considered as a disciplinary matter.
3.9 Kimpton will keep its policy, procedures and practices on equality and equal opportunities under review.
4.1 The following principles should apply whenever recruitment or selection for positions takes place, whether externally or internally:
4.1.1 individuals will be assessed according to their personal capability to carry out a given job ;
4.1.2 assumptions that only certain types of person will be able to perform certain types of work must not be made ;
4.1.3 any qualifications or requirements applied to a job which have, or may have, the effect of inhibiting applications from certain types of person should only be retained if they can be justified in terms of the job to be done ;
4.1.4 any age limits applied to a job should only be retained if they can be objectively justified in terms of the job to be done. Kimpton notes that this will not be the case in most cases;
4.1.5 the use of years of experience as a criteria for a particular role will need to be objectively justified ;
4.1.6 recruitment solely by word of mouth should be minimised as its effect is, or may be, to prevent certain types of person from applying . Kimpton advertise vacancies on national job boards and work with employment charities and community schemes that work with hard to reach groups such as Liverpool in Work so that opportunities to work with us are available to all.
4.1.7 selection tests should be specifically related to job requirements and should measure the person’s actual or inherent ability to do or train for the work ;
4.1.8 selection tests should be reviewed regularly to ensure they remain relevant and free from any unjustifiable bias, either in content or in scoring mechanism ;
4.1.9 applications from different types of person should be processed in the same way and the same questions asked at interview ;
4.1.10 written records of interviews and reasons for appointment and non-appointment should be kept ;
4.1.11 questions at interview should relate to the requirements of the job ;
4.1.12 where any provision, criterion or practice for recruitment and selection puts disabled people at a substantial disadvantage due to a reason connected with their disability, reasonable adjustments should be made to eliminate or, if that is not reasonably practicable, reduce the disadvantage. This could, for example, be making different interview arrangements for an applicant with mobility problems or arranging for facilities for applicants with sight or hearing impairments ; and
4.1.13 decisions regarding the method of recruitment or selection, or who is recruited or selected, should only be made by a person who has read and understood this policy.
5.1 The following principles should apply to appointments for promotion, transfer and training:
5.1.1 assessment criteria and appraisal schemes should be carefully examined to ensure that they are not discriminatory, whether directly or indirectly ;
5.1.2 assessment criteria and appraisal schemes should be monitored on a regular basis and, where such criteria or schemes result in predominantly one group of employees gaining access to promotion, transfer or training, or being awarded a particular appraisal grade, they should be checked to make sure this is not due to any hidden or indirect discrimination ;
5.1.3 promotion and career development patterns will be regularly monitored to ensure that access to promotion, training and career development opportunities is not denied to particular groups or types of employees ;
5.1.4 traditional qualifications and requirements for promotion, transfer and training, such as length of service, years of experience or age may discriminate against certain employees and will need to be objectively justified by reference to the job requirements ;
5.1.5 policies and practices regarding selection for training and personal development should not normally result in an imbalance in training between groups of employees; and
5.1.6 where any provision, criterion or practice relating to promotion, appraisal, transfer or training puts disabled employees at a substantial disadvantage for a reason connected with their disability, reasonable adjustments will be made to eliminate or, if that is not reasonably practicable, reduce the disadvantage.
6.1 The following principles apply to terms of employment, benefits, facilities and services:
6.1.1 the terms of employment, benefits, facilities and services available to employees should be reviewed regularly to ensure that they are provided in a way which is free from unlawful discrimination ;
6.1.2 part-time employees should receive pay, benefits, facilities and services on a pro rata basis to their full-time comparator unless otherwise objectively justified;
6.1.3 where any provision, criterion or practice relating to terms of employment, benefits, facilities and services puts disabled employees at a substantial disadvantage due to a reason connected with their disability, reasonable adjustments will be made to eliminate or, if that is not reasonably practicable, reduce the disadvantage; and
6.1.4 pay and bonus criteria, policies and practices should be carefully examined and regularly monitored, and if it appears that any group of employees are disadvantaged by them, they will be checked to make sure that this is not due to any hidden or indirect discrimination.
7.1 Employees who, in good faith, bring a grievance (or assist another to do so) either under this policy, or otherwise in relation to an equality or equal opportunities matter, will not be disciplined, dismissed or otherwise suffer any adverse treatment for having done so.
7.2 No member of a particular group of employees will be disciplined or dismissed for performance or behaviour which would be overlooked or condoned in another group, unless there is genuine and lawful justification for different treatment.
7.3 Redundancy criteria and procedures will be carefully examined to ensure that they are not applied and do not operate in an unlawfully discriminatory manner.
8.1 It is Kimpton’s policy that disabled people, including job applicants and employees, should be able to participate in all of Kimpton’s activities fully, on an equal basis with people who are not disabled.
8.2 Due to the wide variety of potential disabilities and the likelihood of a disability affecting different people in different ways, it would be inappropriate to prescribe rigid rules on how issues concerning disabled people should be dealt with. What is essential, however, is that all managers, supervisors and human resources staff take all reasonably practical steps to ensure that disabled people are not less favourably treated or disadvantaged by comparison to people who are not disabled in relation to their work, working environment, or by any provision, criterion or practice used by Kimpton. Managers and supervisors need to be aware, in particular, that an employee on long-term sick leave or with intermittent sickness absence may be disabled.
8.3 Kimpton is particularly concerned that disabled employees are treated equally in the following areas:
8.4 For the purpose of this policy, disabilities are either physical or mental impairments that have a substantial and long-term effect upon a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Particular conditions such as HIV and some forms of cancer are covered from the point of diagnosis and do not have to already be long-term.
8.5 Some disabilities are immediately obvious, while other disabilities may not be apparent at all. Certain conditions are not considered to be disabilities, for example, poor eyesight that is corrected simply by wearing prescription spectacles, or addiction to alcohol or other substances.
8.6 The general equality and equal opportunity principles set out earlier in this policy will apply in relation to disabled people whether they currently have a disability or have had a disability in the past.
8.7 Kimpton will take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure that disabled people are able to participate in its business and activities on an equal basis with people who are not disabled.
8.8 Kimpton will not, for a reason relating to a person’s disability, treat disabled people less favourably than it treats, or would treat, others to whom the same reason does not or would not apply, unless that treatment would be justified.
8.9 If any provision, criterion or practice used by, or on behalf of, Kimpton, or any physical feature of premises occupied by Kimpton, puts disabled people at a substantial disadvantage compared to people who are not disabled, Kimpton will take such reasonably practicable steps as it can to prevent this disadvantage. This is known as the duty to make reasonable adjustments.
Signed Director:
Dated: 8th June 2023
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