POLICY FOR PROFESSIONALISM
A POLICY AGAINST WORKPLACE HARASSMENT & OTHER DETRIMENTAL OR ILLEGAL ACTS
Professional Trust
The keystone of everything this company creates is born from the individual relationships it builds, protects and respects. GBC is committed to providing a work environment for all employees, contractors and associates that is free from detriment, harm, distress, threat, sexual harassment, other types of discriminatory harassment, and intimidation . Employees and contractors are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and to show respect for their co-workers, for the company and for all others. Failure to act with reasonable discernment of what is commonly considered professional respect will result in immediate severance. When trust is broken, GBC servers ties completely.
Discriminatory, sexual harassment and other types of discriminatory harassment are illegal. The organization’s property (e.g. telephones, copy machines, facsimile machines, computers, and computer applications such as e-mail and Internet) may not be used to engage in conduct that violates this policy. The organization’s policy against harassment covers employees and other individuals who have a relationship with the organization, which enables the organization to exercise a degree of control over the individual’s conduct in places and activities that relate to the organization’s work (e.g. directors, officers, contractors, vendors, volunteers, interns, etc.).
GBC is committed to maintaining an environment free from pollution, bigotry, lies, gossip, bullying, harassment, which can be a form of workplace discrimination. All employees have a right to work in an environment free from distraction, bullying or harassing conduct, including sexual harassment. The Company requires that all employees (including contractors) refrain from polluting, misrepresentation, bullying or harassing anyone, including coworkers, members of the public, vendors, and clients. Those who fail to comply shall be transparently publicly proven.
- This policy applies to all employees (including contractors) and to non-employees who bully or harass others on company time or property.
- GBC will not tolerate harassment of any kind. A confirmed complaint of harassment will result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
- This policy will be distributed to all current employees (including contractors) and posted in a prominent location in the workplace. The policy will also be distributed to new employees during orientation.
- Individuals that report bullying or harassment in good faith are protected from retaliation by the GBC or any associate of the company. Retaliation includes but is not limited to employee discipline, discharge, further acts of discrimination, or other adverse actions when those acts are intended to punish an employee for reporting harassment, opposing discrimination, or filing or assisting with a complaint to local, state, or federal antidiscrimination agencies.
- GBC will promptly investigate complaints of bullying, harassment, or retaliation. Such investigations will be fair and impartial. All associates of the Company are required to cooperate with investigations of workplace bullying, harassment, or retaliation.
Bullying is verbal or physical conduct that seeks to harm, intimidate, or coerce another person. Bullying is not necessarily based on a person’s membership in a protected category like race, sex, age, or disability, among others.
Harassment is persistent and unwelcome conduct because of any of the bases protected by law (race, sex, age, disability, etc.). Harassment exists whenever
- Submission to harassing conduct is made, either explicitly or implicitly, a term or condition of an individual’s employment,
- Submission to or rejection of such conduct is used as the basis for an employment decision affecting an individual.
- The conduct interferes with an employee’s work or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.
PROHIBITION OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT
The organization’s policy against sexual misconduct prohibits harassment such as sexual advances or requests for sexual favors or other physical or verbal conduct of a sexual nature, when: (1) submission to such conduct is made as an express or implicit condition of employment; (2) submission to or rejection of such conduct is used as a basis for employment decisions; or (3) such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an employee’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, humiliating, or offensive working environment.
While it is not possible to list all of the circumstances that constitute sexual harassment, the following are some examples: (1) unwelcome sexual advances -whether they involve physical touching or not; (2) requests for sexual favors in exchange for actual or promised job benefits such as favorable reviews, salary increases, promotions, increased benefits, or continued employment; or (3) coerced sexual acts.
Depending on the circumstances, the following conduct may also constitute sexual harassment: (1) use of sexual epithets, jokes, written or oral references to sexual conduct, gossip regarding one’s sex life; (2) sexually oriented comment on an individual’s body, comment about an individual’s sexual activity, deficiencies, or prowess; (3) displaying sexually suggestive objects, pictures, cartoons; (4) unwelcome leering, whistling, deliberate brushing against the body in a suggestive manner; (5) sexual gestures or sexually suggestive comments; (6) inquiries into or discussion of one’s sexual experiences.
It is also unlawful and expressly against the organization’s policy to retaliate against an employee for filing a complaint of sexual harassment or for cooperating with an investigation of a complaint of sexual harassment.
Prohibition of Other Types of Discriminatory Harassment: It is also against the organization’s policy to engage in verbal or physical conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual because of his or her Protected Status (or that of the individual’s relatives, friends, or associates) that: (1) has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, humiliating, or offensive working environment; (2) has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance; or (3) otherwise adversely affects an individual’s employment opportunities.
The following examples constitute discriminatory harassment:
Epithets, slurs, negative stereotyping, jokes, or threatening, intimidating, or hostile acts that relate to Protected Status, rights to work or the health and well-being of the company; Written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility toward the company, an individual or group because of their Protected Status.; Other conduct may constitute discriminatory harassment if it falls within the definition of discriminatory harassment set forth above or as commonly understood as discrimination or harassment.
It is against the organization’s policy to retaliate against an employee for filing a complaint of discriminatory harassment or for cooperating in an investigation of a complaint of discriminatory harassment.
RECOGNIZING HARASSMENT
It is impossible to list every type of behavior that can be considered bullying or harassment in violation of this policy. In general, any conduct that could interfere with an individual’s work performance or create a hostile work environment is forbidden. This is the case even if the offending employee did not mean to be offensive – employees must be sensitive to the feelings of others. Even mild offensive conduct can be considered bullying or harassment if someone has made it clear that it is unwelcome. Some examples include:
Verbal: Jokes, insults, and innuendoes; threats; degrading sexual remarks; whistling; cat calls; comments on a person’s body or sex life; or pressures for sexual favors; participating in derogatory or insulting gossip.
Non-Verbal: Intimidating or confrontational body language; gestures, staring, touching, hugging, or patting; blocking a person’s movement; standing too close; brushing against a person’s body; display of sexually suggestive or degrading pictures; racist or other derogatory cartoons or drawings.
ASSOCIATE RESPONSIBILITIES
Associates who experience, witness or suspect bullying or harassing behavior must report the behavior to their direct supervisor, or to another supervisor or human resources if their direct supervisor is involved in the bullying or harassment. Employees that feel comfortable directly intervening in situations where they perceive bullying or harassment are encouraged to do so.
SUPERVISOR RESPONSIBILITIES
Officers, Supervisors and managers who receive a complaint of bullying or harassment, who observe such behavior, or suspect that such behavior is occurring have a duty to investigate the behavior and address it as necessary, or to report such suspected harassment to the Chief Executive Officer.
In addition to being subject to discipline if they engage in harassing conduct, supervisors and managers are subject to discipline for failing to report suspected harassment or otherwise knowingly allowing harassment to continue, or for engaging in retaliation or failing to report retaliatory acts.
COMPLAINTS AND INVESTIGATION OF HARASSMENT
All complaints should be documented and reported on the company website at https://gamingbenefitscorp.com /. GBC takes all reports of discrimination and harassment seriously. The GBC will promptly and thoroughly investigate any complaint, information, or knowledge of harassment. The investigation will be as confidential as possible. All persons involved, including complainants, witnesses, and alleged perpetrators may be required to cooperate in an investigation, will receive fair and impartial treatment, and will not be subject to retaliation for information disclosed to the Company.
The Company will take any interim actions necessary to protect complainants from further acts of discrimination, bullying, harassment, or retaliation during the investigation. The Company may review documents, interview employees, or take whatever investigatory steps it deems necessary to determine whether harassment occurred.
The Company will notify the complainant of the outcome of the investigation, although the Company may decline to reveal specific disciplinary actions taken where there are confidentiality issues with such disclosures.
EXTERNAL REMEDIES AVAILABLE
Harassment and discrimination because of a protected characteristic (race, sex, age, disability, etc.) is illegal under applicable local, state, and federal laws. Aside from the Company’s internal process, employees may choose to pursue legal remedies with appropriate governmental entities at any time, including
If you think that you have been subjected to discrimination, you may file a complaint within 180 days from the date of the alleged violation with either the Local One Stop Manager or the Assistant to the Commissioner, NHES, 45 South Fruit Street, Concord NH 03301, telephone number (603) 228-4073 or the Director, Civil Rights Center (CRC), U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Room N-4123, Washington DC 20210. If you file your complaint with the Local One Stop Manager or the Assistant to the Commissioner (NHES) you must wait either until NHES issues a written Notice of Final Action, or until 90 days have passed (whichever is sooner), before filing with the Civil Rights Center (see address above). If NHES does not give you a written Notice of Final Action within 90 days of the day on which you filed your complaint, you do not have to wait for NHES to issue that Notice before filing a complaint with CRC. However, you must file your CRC complaint within 30 days of the 90 day deadline (in other words, within 120 days after the day on which you filed your complaint with the recipient). If NHES does give you a written Notice of Final Action on your complaint, but you are dissatisfied with the decision or resolution, you may file a complaint with CRC. You must file your CRC complaint within 30 days of the date on which you received the Notice of Final Action.
WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION POLICY
It is the policy of GBC to abide by all applicable federal, state, and local laws, rules and regulations, and to require all of its associates do the same.
In accordance with this policy and applicable law, an associate will be protected from discrimination and retaliation if the associate reports to the Chief Executive Officer or Board President any good faith concern regarding the organization’s practices or conditions, which the employee has reasonable cause to believe are in violation of any federal, state, or local law, rules or regulations, or which the associate has reasonable cause to believe risk the health or safety of that associate or any other individual. GBC will promptly investigate each complaint to determine its merits, and the appropriate action to be taken. Confidentiality will be maintained to the extent practical and appropriate under the circumstances. If an investigation reveals that unlawful conduct has taken place, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken, up to and including suspension or discharge.
GBC will not discharge, threaten, discriminate or otherwise retaliate against an associate who submits a good faith complaint to GBC, participates in any investigation, or legal proceeding arising from any such complaint, or on the basis of any other lawful actions of such associate in submitting a good faith report relating to real or perceived unlawful conduct. This statement applies even if an investigation proves that there has been no unlawful activity involving GBC or any of its associates.
In order to receive the protections under the NH Whistleblowers’ Protection Act (RSA 275-E), the associate who has reported or caused to be reported a violation, or unsafe condition or practice, to a public body must first bring the alleged violation, condition, or practice to the attention of the Chief Executive Officer or the Board President, and must allow the organization a reasonable opportunity to correct that violation, condition, or practice, unless the associate has specific reasons to believe that a report to GBC will not result in a prompt correction of the violation, condition, or practice.
Any action considered to be discriminatory or retaliatory should be reported immediately to the Chief Executive Officer or the Board President as outlined in the Board’s Whistleblower Policy. GBC will not tolerate discrimination or retaliation against the complainant by any associate, and will subject such associate to discipline, up to and including suspension or discharge from employment. Associates who are not themselves complainants, but who assist in an investigation relating to unlawful activity, will also be protected from discrimination and retaliation.
Report harassment or discrimination https://gamingbenefitscorp.com/reporting/