This policy is the responsibility of Tony Johnson and Roger Payton who will monitor its effectiveness and to whom any queries should be addressed.

In general rtfacts will ensure that those undertaking recruitment will be properly trained in procedure and in legal requirements affecting recruitment practice, including discrimination law, Rehabilitation of Offenders, the recruitment of young people and immigration issues

It is a requirement that all recruitment takes place within the following procedural guidelines and any departure from these guidelines exposing the company to legal claims and/or substandard appointments will be considered a disciplinary offence

Procedure
Stage One – the vacancy
When a position falls vacant the appropriate management team will consider firstly whether this is an opportunity to make organisational changes.

In any event the job description and person specification attached to that post will be scrutinised and updated and an objective selection criteria drawn up on the basis of these specs. 

This and subsequent actions will be undertaken by a panel of no more than 3 (three) relevant recruiters, appointed in this initial stage.

Stage Two – the advertisement
Once the job description and person specification are completed, an advertisement will be placed in the appropriate media. Whilst working within appropriate parameters, rtfacts will ensure that this advert will appear in publications with the widest and most diverse readership to ensure all likely candidates are reached.

The advert itself will be brief and state the main skills and experience required and will state that rtfacts is an Equal Opportunities Employer.
Neutral language should be used. If a job title suggests a specific gender then it should be made clear that applications will be welcome from either sex. Nothing within an advert – including text or photos -should give the impression of a preference for a specific gender or race.

An Application Form will be sent to each Applicant. This Form will be in a format scrutinised and approved by Tony Johnson 
and Roger Payton and will avoid all discriminatory questions. 

Stage Three – selection for interview
Each member of the panel will read the Application Forms separately and only after having made independent assessments will the panel meet to make its final choices for interview.
For guidance: 
1. No assumptions should be made as to stereotypical requirements for a job – do not assume a woman is excluded from a job that involves heavy lifting
2. Length of residence in the UK should not be taken into account unless essential
3. A standard of spoken or written English that is adequate to do the job only should be required. Higher requirements may be discriminatory
4. Give proper consideration to those wanting to work part-time. Not to do so may be discriminatory
5. Always consider what reasonable adjustments could be made so that a disabled candidate would be able to do the job. Also consider any reasonable adjustments that could be made so that a disabled candidate can attend interview

When meeting to discuss final selection – panel members should check each others’ decision to ensure only fair and objective reasons are given for their choices 

Stage Four – the interview
Interviews will always be before a panel of at least 2.

An agreed set of questions must be put to each interviewee. These questions will be decided beforehand by the panel, will relate to the job and person specifications and will be fair and objective.

Care must be taken not to ask questions that could indicate discrimination. Therefore women should not be asked about their children, their marital status, their husband’s job. Interviewees from ethnic minorities should not be asked where they are from or for details of their religious observance.

An interview assessment sheet will be used to objectively score interviewees against the selection criteria.

The interview will be concluded by telling the interviewee when they are likely to be given the panel’s decision.

Stage Five – the offer
The panel will combine their scores to establish the most suitable candidate.

The successful candidate will be offered the position by letter. It will be subject to any conditions that rtfacts may impose, such as satisfactory references. 

The offer letter will also contain a copy of the employer’s terms of employment and any ancillary documents. 
The candidate will be asked to sign the offer letter indicating acceptance of the offer and receipt of the contractual documents

Immigration and Race Discrimination
rtfacts is aware of its duties under immigration legislation and recognises that unthinking observance of those duties could give rise to discrimination on the grounds of race. Therefore no assumptions are to be made as to the immigration status of any applicants and the following checks are to be made only after a decision on the successful candidate has been reached:

• Prior to starting work, all new employees will be required to produce a document from their previous employer or a relevant agency, (the Inland Revenue, the Benefits Agency, the Contributions Agency, the Employment service or their successors) stating their national insurance number.
• Should they be unable to do so, then some other document as defined by immigration legislation must be produced and a copy made and kept by rtfacts. If no such document is produced, then the offer of employment will be withdrawn.

Stage Six – induction
On starting employment each new employee will undergo an induction procedure which will include:
- Introduction to Staff Handbook and delivery of individual copy
- Introduction to Health and Safety Manual and delivery of individual copy
- Explanation of the Company’s organisational structure
- Discussion of any necessary initial training 

Unsuccessful Candidates
rtfacts recognises that an objective and open process should include feedback to unsuccessful candidates if required. Panel members should be aware of this throughout the process and be prepared to provide constructive feedback. Any requests for feedback should be brought to the attention of Tony Johnson or Roger Payton who will coordinate the panel’s response.

Records
All records produced during this process will be kept for a minimum of three months and a maximum of six months.

Data Protection
rtfacts recognises its responsibilities under the Data Protection Act to process data lawfully and will ensure all applicants are informed as to the processing of any personal data generated during this process.