Real Life Research Institute Africa Program (RLRI-AP) is committed to creating a safe, flexible, and respectful work environment for everyone. All RLRI-AP representatives are expected to always treat others with dignity, courtesy, and respect. We will not tolerate bullying, harassment, discrimination, or exploitation.
We will take all measures to address any behaviors that amount to bullying, harassment, and discrimination. Reasonable management action, including decisions about poor performance and direct work, is not considered bullying.
While RLRI-AP encourages employees who feel they have been discriminated against, bullied, sexually harassed, or victimized to take appropriate action by requesting the offender to cease their behavior or raising a complaint with the manager, employees who do not feel safe taking this course of action should make a report as per relevant internal policies.
Roles and Responsibilities
All employees and related personnel are entitled to:
- Recruitment and selection based on merit and not irrelevant personal characteristics
- Work that is free from bullying, discrimination, sexual harassment, and other forms of incivility
- Raise issues, or make inquiries and complaints reasonably and respectfully, without fear of being victimized
- Reasonable and flexible work arrangements to accommodate, when needed, their family responsibilities, disability, religious beliefs, or culture
All employees and related personnel are obligated to:
- Follow the Safeguarding Code of Conduct in this Policy
- Support anyone who has experienced discrimination, bullying, or sexual harassment, including by informing them on how to raise a complaint
- Avoid gossip and respect the confidentiality of complaint resolution procedures
- Always treat others with dignity, courtesy, and respect
Managers and supervisors must:
- Model appropriate standards of behavior
- Educate and make employees and related personnel aware of their obligations under this Policy, and under the law
- Intervene promptly and appropriately when they become aware of inappropriate behavior
- Fairly resolve and enforce workplace behavioral standards, making sure to give a fair hearing to all sides involved
- Help employees resolve complaints informally
- Seriously consider requests for flexible work arrangements
- Ensure employees who make complaints are not victimized
- Ensure merit-based recruitment