Terms of Usage and Harassment Policy

Introduction

Neals Services and its affiliates, referred to as “the company” are committed to maintaining an environment free from bullying and harassment, which can be a form of discrimination. All job seekers and requesters have a right to an environment free from bullying or harassing conduct, including sexual harassment. The Company requires that all contractors refrain from bullying or harassing anyone, including other service providers, members, vendors, and clients.

Policy Statement

1. This policy applies to all (including contractors) who bully or harass others.
2. The Company will not tolerate harassment of any kind. A confirmed complaint of harassment will result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination, a lifelong ban of access and reporting to local authorities.
3. This policy will be distributed to all and posted in a prominent location online. The policy will also be available to new providers during the registration process.
4. Individuals that report bullying or harassment in good faith are protected from retaliation by the Company. Retaliation includes but is not limited to 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.
5. The Company will promptly investigate complaints of bullying, harassment, or retaliation. Such investigations will be fair and impartial. All registered providers / contractors of the Company are required to cooperate with investigations of bullying (including cyber bullying), harassment, or retaliation.

Definitions

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 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 or contract.
• Submission to or rejection of such conduct is used as the basis for performing a job or granting the exclusive rights for said job or contract.
• The conduct interferes with a clients or contractors work or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment.

Sexual harassment is one type of harassment and includes unwelcome sexual advances, unwelcome physical contact of a sexual nature or unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature includes the repeated making of unsolicited, inappropriate gestures or comments and the display of sexual materials not necessary for our work.

Telephone or electronic harassment / bullying will also not be tolerated and will result in immediate termination of your account and report to your local authority if required.

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 individual did not mean to be offensive – everyone 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 innuendos; 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.

Complaint and Investigation of Harassment

The Company takes all reports of harassment seriously. The Company 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 bullying, harassment, or retaliation during the investigation. The Company may review documents, interview contractors and clients, 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.