NON-DISCRIMINATION CLAUSE - Blake's Hard Cider
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NON-DISCRIMINATION CLAUSE

Equal Employment Opportunity:
It is the established policy of Blake Farms Hard Cider to provide an equal employment opportunity to all qualified persons and to administer all aspects and conditions of employment without regard to race, religious belief, creed, color, sex, age, national origin, veteran’s status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression or any other protected classification, in accordance with applicable law.

Any employee who believes that this broad-­based policy is in any way not being adhered to in accordance with the law should advise management at once, either orally (informally) or in writing. Immediate action will be taken to correct any inconsistency with requirements of law.

Blake Farms Hard Cider affirms its commitment to provide a work environment free from discrimination, retaliation and harassment. Abuse of the dignity of anyone through ethnic, racist or sexist slurs, or through other derogatory or objectionable conduct is offensive employee behavior. Discrimination or harassment against any race, religious belief, creed, color, sex, age, national origin, disability, or any other protected classification, will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

Anti-­Harassment Policy
We do not tolerate unlawful harassment of any of our employees, customers or clients, vendors, suppliers, or independent contractors. Any form of harassment which violates federal, state or local law, including, but not limited to harassment related to an individual’s race, religion, color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, uniform service member status, marital status, pregnancy, age, medical condition (including cancer, HIV/AIDS, or genetic defect), disability, or any other protected status in accordance with the requirements of all federal, state and local laws is a violation of this policy and will be treated as a disciplinary matter.

Harassment is conduct focused on a person or group of persons including, but not limited to:
• Physical or verbal abuse
• Unwelcome activity of a sexual nature including retaliation related thereto
• Any behavior or action that interferes with an individual’s ability to perform assignments, or that creates a hostile or intimidating work environment. Harassment of any kind is counter-­productive to the Company goals and profitability because it diminishes the employee willingness to perform jobs in a caring and responsible manner.
The following are examples of various types of harassment.
• Verbal Abuse -­ Any language that degrades or berates others, including, but not limited to, racial, religious, or sexual comments, jokes, sexual innuendoes, or threats of any kind.
• Physical Abuse -­ Includes touching, hitting, slamming, throwing, kicking, or threatening another person, including restraining by force or blocking the path of another.
• Interference or Hostile Environment – Includes any behavior or action that interferes with an employee’s ability to perform work assignments or results in or creates a hostile or intimidating work environment.
• Sexual Harassment -­ Includes, but is not limited to, sexual advances, requests for sexual acts or favors and other physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
o Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implied as a term or condition of an individual’s employment;;
o Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting the individual;; or
o Such conduct is severe and pervasive, and has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.
• Retaliation -­ Any adverse action or threat of adverse action taken or made because an individual has exercised or attempted to exercise any rights under state or federal employment laws or under the policies of Blake Farms Hard Cider.. Retaliation may include, but is not limited to:
o Verbal abuse
o Threats of withholding or withdrawal of pay, promotions, training, or other employment opportunities.In addition to the above forms of harassment, any behavior or action that interferes with an individual’s ability to perform job duties or results in or creates a hostile or intimidating work environment is considered harassment.

Blake Farms Hard Cider will not tolerate the discrimination or harassment of employees and/or applicants. Comments, conduct, off-­color jokes, and innuendoes that may be perceived as offensive or harassing are strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated.
In addition, Blake Farms Hard Cider will not tolerate the harassment of Company personnel by non-­Company personnel on Company premises. Non-­Company personnel include, but are not limited to, customers, vendors, guests and regulators. Any employee who feels he/she is the victim of discrimination, retaliation or harassment has a responsibility to report this to the Human Resources Manager, a human resources representative or other managerial personnel. Reporting of the incident should be made verbally and in writing to the Human Resources Manager, a human resources representative or other managerial personnel immediately. A written complaint should include the specific nature of the incident, date and place of incident, names of all parties involved, as well as a detailed report of all pertinent facts. Complaints of harassment will be promptly and carefully investigated. Investigations will include interviews with all relevant persons, including the accused and other potential witnesses.

Non-­Retaliation Policy
Blake Farms Hard Cider follows applicable statutes which prohibit retaliation against any employee who makes a discrimination complaint or who participates in any investigation under the discrimination laws. Involvement in an investigation will not, however, insulate an employee from appropriate disciplinary or other employment actions. Any employee who feels that he or she has experienced retaliation under this policy should immediately report it to any person responsible for receiving harassment complaints under this policy. Any employee found to have engaged in prohibited acts of retaliation will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.

Blake Farms Hard Cider’s policy is to follow all applicable anti-­discrimination laws. The above information is intended as a short summary of those requirements. Any questions regarding this policy should be directed to a human resources representative or other managerial personnel.

Any employee who engages in harassment may be subject to disciplinary action including possible termination. Likewise, any employee making deliberately false accusations in this regard may be subject to similar disciplinary actions.