iTrain is committed to providing equal opportunity employment to all employees and applicants, and to providing and maintaining an environment where all staff. Whatever their working pattern, no matter what their age, sex, sexual orientation or marital status, race, religious beliefs, nationality, ethnic or national origin, disability, part-time working, responsibility for dependants, political beliefs, trade union membership or trade union activity have the right to be treated on the same basis in fair competition. Harassment and bullying are not acceptable and will not be tolerated in the Group. The elimination of unfair discrimination and prejudice, and the embracing of diversity, is intended to provide individuals with scope to develop their full potential and to enable the Group to maximise use of talent.

Employee Expectations

iTrain is committed to training all staff in equal opportunities practices, and all staff are obliged to comply with such practices. In particular, every employee has a responsibility to:

• Ensure all employees and people associated with the Group are treated in a nondiscriminatory way.
• Challenge any behaviour that could be interpreted as unfair discrimination.
• Encourage employees to maximise their contribution to the business.
• Understand what is expected of them in terms of performance, behaviour and conduct towards others.

Manager Expectations

In addition, Managers have a responsibility to:

• Ensure systems and procedures used do not discriminate.
• Set a positive example in everything they do.
• Listen to and respect others, do not dismiss their problems as “trivial” or not related to work.
• Discourage discriminatory speculations and rumours.
• Observe people and stop inappropriate behaviour immediately.

If employees have any concerns about discrimination in the work place they can talk directly to the HR Manager. We will make sure that employees are free to raise concerns without any fear of reprisal. Anyone found to be engaging in unlawful discrimination will be disciplined, and risks being dismissed. iTrain will not accept instructions from clients that indicate an intention to discriminate unlawfully. iTrain Equal Opportunities Policy is reviewed on a regular basis, ensuring its objectives are met and that it abides by all statutory obligations under relevant legislation. In line with the Data Protection Act sensitive personal information such as LGBTQ+ communities and faith groups, are only recorded about employees when there is a specific and legitimate reason for doing so.

Environmental Performance

iTrain confirms the company’s commitment to the proper management and monitoring of waste, the reduction of pollution, compliance with environmental regulation and relevent training of our staff and our goal to achieve ISO 14001 registration.

iTrain recognises that our operations have an effect on the environment. As a consequence of this, management is commited to continuous improvements in environmental performance.

As an IT services company we design, utilise and promote non-paper based processes as a matter of course, thereby contributing positively to environmental wellbeing and conserving resources. We recognise, however, that in our day to day operations we inevitably impact he environment, and we wush to minimise the potentially harmful effects of such activity wherever possible. We aim for environmental regulations, laws and codes of practice to set the minimum standards of environmental performance, and to exceed these standards through a coordinated environmental management system.

Policies

The following company policies apply:

• iTrain mintains that a primary part of its corporate environmental strategy is sustainable waste management, and as such recognises its responsibilities to recycle materials wherever possible, particularly paper, plastic and IT equipment.
• We aim to minimise waste and, whenever possible, recycle materials.
• Where dispoosal is required, we will dispose of all waste through safe and responsible methods.
• We work with our suppliers to ensure they recognise and reduce the environmental impact of their products and transportation.
• We aim to reduce the environmental impact of our employees’ travel requirements by selecting modes of transport that reduce pollution wherever possible.
• Policies are implemented through guidelines and training e.g. email, team meatings and training sessions.
• iTrain sets environmental targets and goals designed to improve our environmental performance.

We will conduct an annual self-evaluation of our performance in implementing these policies and in complying with all applicable lawes and regulations.

iTrain’s Sustainability Policy is based upon the following principles:

• iTrain seeks to make the most effective and efficient use of all resources, encouraging all employees to develop an ecologically sound and sustainable approach to their work .
• iTrain is committed to implementing the requirements of all relevant sustainability legislation and regulations and, where possible, exceeding any relevant minimum requirements.
• iTrain aims to integrate sustainability considerations into all business decisions.

Practical Steps

Practical steps include:

• Energy Conservation: e.g. turning off electrical equipment when not required, purchasing energy efficient equipment.
• Reducing Pollution: e.g. using public transport and walking wherever possible, using teleconferencing where it is a suitable alternative, reducing the need for employees to travel by supporting alternative working arrangements where possible.
• Waste Reduction and Recycling: e.g. recycling all materials possible, re-using paper, printing on scrap paper, printing on both sides of paper.
• Communication: ensuring that all employees are fully aware of our Sustainability Policy and are committed to implementing and improving it.

We conduct an annual self-evaluation of our performance in implementing this policy and in complying with all applicable laws and regulations.

This policy sets out general rules to be followed by all employees in order to minimise IT security risks and to ensure appropriate use of the internet, email and customer data. It is each employee’s responsibility to adopt suitable security measures and help create a security-conscious culture.

Internet

All employees have unlimited access to the internet and are expected to use it appropriately:

• Internet usage should be primarily for purposes directly related to your work.
• Personal use is defined as any internet browsing that is not directly related to your work. Whilst the company does not wish to prohibit such use entirely, it is only considered appropriate to access the internet for personal use during the working day at lunch breaks and other short, appropriately taken breaks.
• Employees should not under any circumstances visit unsuitable or defamatory websites or download similar material, e.g. pornographic, chat rooms using offensive language.
• Employees must abide by any copyright and licensing restrictions on internet-sourced material.
• All company PCs and laptops are installed with anti-virus software. Be aware of the danger of importing viruses through downloaded files and programs and check the size and source of a file before downloading. Check with the IT department if unsure.
• Your ‘Central’ password enables you to access company information that is appropriate to you and your role, and should not be disclosed to other employees or any external party. The IT department and HR have access to this information as appropriate.

Email

All employees have a company email account. Like any business communication, email should be treated as a professional and generally formal method of correspondence:

• All employees have a secure email login that should not be disclosed to other employees or any external party. The IT department and HR have access to this information as appropriate.
• No offensive, indecent or obscene material, or anything likely to cause offence on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation, race, disability, age, religion or belief, should be circulated via company emails.
• Employees are discouraged from using their work email addresses for non-work matters.
• Items which are marked “Personal” or “Private and Confidential”, or which appear to be of a personal nature, should be opened by the addressee only or by that person’s secretary/PA. Unless mail items are marked in this way they will be considered not to contain confidential information, as designated by the Data Protection Act, (1998).
• The ‘Bcc’ option should not be used in company emails with the exception of company-wide emails.  The ‘Cc’ option should be used with care; in most circumstances internal emails do not need to be ‘Cc’d to people and you do not need to copy them in “just in case they are interested”.
• Do not send confidential business information via email unless absolutely necessary, and use encryption software where appropriate. Contact the IT department for further advice. Please also see the company’s ‘Confidentiality and Security’ policy.

Monitoring

The use of websites by individual users is logged and may be monitored by the IT department at any time as required.  Emails may be monitored and intercepted by the IT department in extreme circumstances as appropriate.  Please see the company’s ‘Electronic Security’ policy.

Customer Data

It is the company’s policy to at all times fully comply with current legislation, good practise and customer requirements in the capture, holding and subsequent disposal of data.  In this regard, consultants and other employees engaged in work that may require the acquisition of customer data shall:

• Acquire only data that is required for agreed business reasons and shall hold that data for only as long as is required by those business reasons
• Dispose of data in ways that are commensurate with its sensitivity (both commercial and personal) and as agreed with the customer
• Take all reasonable precautions to safeguard data whilst in their possession to avoid its loss, theft or unintentional transmission or use. Where appropriate this shall include the use of encryption.
• Comply with agreed customer information security policies 
• To support this policy, the Senior Management Team have authorised the use of random checks of laptops and associated external memory devices. Where employees are found to have deliberately or routinely failed to meet the above requirements, disciplinary action may be taken.

Please also see the company’s ‘Personal Computers and Software’ policy.  Failure to follow any of the rules above may result in disciplinary action.

Confidentiality and Security

This applies to all employees, both on and off the Group’s premises, and visitors:

• All communications – both written and oral, inside and outside of the work place – that relate to our confidential and proprietary information must be treated with absolute confidentiality. Some examples of such information are: products, pricing schedules, financial data, lists of active or potential clients, technical data and the proprietary information of its current or former clients.
• Be careful when undertaking sensitive product or business-related discussions. Do not have a discussion on a sensitive matter in a public place, including: restaurants, trains, buses, aeroplanes, airports, hotels, building lobbies, pubs etc.
• Do not show confidential product information and materials to outsiders, unless they have a true “need to know” and your manager has approved it.
• Be sure to ensure privacy when faxing or when sending materials or information.
• Do not ever baggage-check confidential materials when you are flying somewhere. You must hand carry it on board.
• Remember to lock filing cabinets containing confidential materials before you leave your office for the day and if you are leaving your office for a long period.
• All visitors to our facilities must be accompanied by an employee. If you see someone who is unescorted, ask them (pleasantly please) if you can direct him or her to a specific employee or escort the visitor to the reception area for further assistance.
• Failure to follow these rules could get you into serious trouble – including immediate dismissal.

Electronic Security

To make your life easier, we make e-mail, fax machines, computers and copy machines available for you to use. These systems are intended solely for business purposes. All our electronic and telephone systems and all communications on them are the property of the Group. No one who works here should have any expectation of privacy when using this equipment. If you use equipment for your own personal purposes, we will be unable to guarantee that your communications will be private.

Should we deem it necessary, we may exercise our right to authorise Group representatives to monitor the use of our equipment. We only intend to exercise this right in extreme circumstances – i.e. to assist us in resolving a problem such as identifying the source of a harassing fax or e-mail message.  This monitoring may include printing and reading e-mail transmitted or stored in our systems – again only in extreme circumstances.  Do not ever access a file or retrieve any stored communication unless you have been authorised to do so, and do not install a private password system of your own on your PC that is unknown to us. Violations of this policy could lead to immediate dismissal.

Personal Computers and Software 

All equipment and software assigned to you remains Group property.  PC users are responsible for the use and security of their equipment files and the maintenance of back-up or duplicate disks of essential files. This includes safeguarding equipment and software from loss or damage and ensuring that it is used only by authorised personnel.  We maintain official files regarding payroll, financial statements, client files and other Group information. These files are strictly confidential. Only those employees who are authorised may access them. Unauthorised access or attempted access may result in immediate dismissal.

All software installed on our PC’s is governed by copyright and licensing agreements. Do not copy or distribute that software unless you are authorised to do so.  If you purchase software for work with your own money, and you expect reimbursement, make sure you have followed our corporate purchase approval process or you may be refused.  Do not install personal software on our LANs. If you want to install personal software on your local drive, you must provide proof of ownership.  You will be held personally responsible for all equipment supplied to you.  Loss of such equipment which cannot be reasonably explained will be treated as a serious disciplinary matter.