In this policy “we”, ‘us”, and “the Company” mean Venesky-Brown Recruitment.
“Bribe” means an inducement or reward offered, promised or provided in order to gain any commercial, contractual, regulatory or personal advantage; “to Bribe” and “Bribery” are construed accordingly.
“Relevant Person” means any individual (whether an officer of employee of the Company, or a temporary worker, contractor or consultant providing services to or on behalf of the Company) or any corporate entity who performs functions for or on behalf of the Company.
One of the Company’s core values is to uphold responsible and fair business practice. It is committed to promoting and maintaining the highest level of ethical standards in relation to all of its business activities. Its reputation for maintaining lawful business practices is of paramount importance and this Policy is designed to preserve these values. The Company therefore has a zero tolerance policy towards bribery and corruption and is committed to acting fairly and with integrity in all of its business dealings and relationships and to implementing and enforcing effective systems to counter bribery.
The scope of this Quality Policy covers all Venesky-Brown/Vescala/Venesky Brown Consult employees based in office locations and those with a hybrid model of working; covering the administration and management of the supply of professionals in construction, engineering, corporate services, admin, digital and IT.
This Policy sets out the steps all of us must take to prevent bribery and corruption in our business and to comply with relevant legislation. It is aimed at:
All Relevant Persons are expected to adhere to the principles set out in this Policy.
The Bribery Act 2010 (the Bribery Act) came into force on 1 July 2011. The Bribery Act affects the Company in its business relations anywhere in the world.
Under the Bribery Act it is an offence to:
Involvement in Bribery or corruption carries many risks. Among them are:
Equally, there are very clear benefits to acting with propriety. These include:
All Relevant Persons and Associated Persons are required at all times:
Bribery of any kind is strictly prohibited. Under no circumstances should any provision be made, money set aside or accounts created for the purposes of facilitating the payment or receipt of a Bribe. The Company recognises that industry practices may vary from country to country or from culture to culture. What is considered unacceptable in one place may be normal or usual practice in another. You should seek appropriate guidance from the Company’s Compliance Officer. All Relevant Persons and all Associated Persons are expected to adhere strictly at all times to the guidelines set out in this Policy. If you are in doubt as to what might amount to bribery or what might constitute a breach of this Policy, refer the matter to your line manager.
This Policy covers the offer or receipt of gifts, hospitality or expenses to ensure that any legitimate expenditure is recorded and does not improperly affect the outcome of procurement, application or any other business transaction.
(a). a personal or corporate gift to a value in excess of £50;
(b). hospitality to a value in excess of £50.
Any payment or gift to a public official or other person to secure or accelerate the prompt or proper performance of a routine government procedure or process, otherwise known as a “facilitation payment”, is also strictly prohibited. Facilitation payments are not commonly paid in the UK but they are common in some other jurisdictions.
Common indicators of corruption include those listed below. There may well be others. For example:
You should be aware that such contributions can be (or be seen as) Bribes in disguise. We do not make donations to political parties. No individual is to make a donation stated to be, or which could be taken to be, on our behalf without the prior approval of the Board. You may, of course, make political donations in a personal capacity but please be sensitive to how such contributions could be perceived, especially by those who are aware of your connection with the Company.
Bribes may even be disguised as charitable donations. Again, for that reason, donations we make are approved by resolution of the Board and recorded. Whilst individuals may of course make personal donations to charity, they should not do so on behalf of the Company without prior approval from the Board.
We understand that different parts of the world have different social and cultural customs. This does not affect our position that we do not pay or accept bribes or act corruptly: we do not and will not. However, subject to that position, we understand the need to be sensitive to local customs. For example, there are cultures in which refusing (or even failing to offer) a gift is considered impolite, and could alienate a key contact. In such cases, please refer to the Human Resources Department.
In some circumstances a payment is justifiable. If one of our people is faced with a threat to his or her personal safety or that of another person if a payment is not made, they should pay it without fear of recrimination. In such cases, however, the HR Department must be contacted as soon as possible, and the payment and the circumstances in which it was made must be fully documented and reported to the Finance Director or Human Resources Manager for the business concerned within five working days.
Such cases will be rare. All Relevant Persons visiting regions where they are more common should familiarise themselves, prior to travel, with current guidance relating to those countries. The Human Resources Department should be consulted if in doubt.
All Relevant Persons are contractually required to take whatever reasonable steps are necessary to ensure compliance with this Policy and to prevent, detect and report any suspected Bribery or corruption. All Relevant Persons have a duty to prevent, detect and report any incident of Bribery and any potential risks of Bribery. If you know or suspect that any Relevant Person plans to offer, promise or give a Bribe or to request, agree to receive or accept a Bribe in connection with the Company’s business, you must disclose this to your line manager as quickly as possible to allow appropriate action to be taken promptly.
The Company is committed to taking appropriate action against Bribery and corruption. This may include either reporting the matter to an appropriate external government department, regulatory agency or the police and/or taking internal disciplinary action against relevant employees and/or terminating contracts with associated persons.
The Company will keep your disclosure confidential during any investigation it undertakes to the extent that this is practical and appropriate in the circumstances. The Company will support anyone who raises genuine concerns in good faith under this Policy, even if they turn out to be mistaken. The Company is also committed to ensuring nobody suffers any detrimental treatment as a result of refusing to take part in bribery or corruption, or because of reporting in good faith their suspicion that an actual or potential bribery or corruption offence has taken place or may take place in the future or because they may assist in the investigation of an allegation of Bribery or corruption.
All accounts, receipts, invoices and other documents and records relating to dealings with third parties must be prepared and maintained with strict accuracy and completeness. No accounts must be kept “off the record” to facilitate or conceal improper payments.
The Company’s Compliance Officer has primary responsibility for ensuring compliance with this Policy and will review its contents on a regular basis. S/he will be responsible for monitoring its effectiveness and will provide regular reports in this regard to the directors of the Company who have overall responsibility for ensuring this Policy complies with the Company’s legal and ethical obligations.
The Company will provide training to all employees to help them understand their duties and responsibilities under this Policy. The Company’s zero tolerance approach to Bribery will also be communicated to all business partners at the outset of the business relationship with them and as appropriate thereafter.
A breach of any of the provisions of this Policy by any Relevant Person who is an officer or employee of the Company will constitute a disciplinary offence and will be dealt with in accordance with the Company’s disciplinary procedure. Depending on the gravity of the offence, it may be treated as gross misconduct and could render the officer or employee liable to summary dismissal.
Breach of this policy by any Relevant Person who is a temporary worker, contractor or consultant providing his/ her services to the Company may lead to the immediate termination of that temporary worker’s, contractor’s or consultant’s engagement by the Company.
Breach of this policy by any Relevant Person which is a corporate entity could lead to the suspension or termination of any relevant contract, sub-contract or other agreement between the corporate entity and the Company.
The policy will be reviewed annually to ensure that it remains relevant.