Grievance Mechanism
1. Committee and process for addressing grievances
ISPL GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL POLICY AND PROCEDURES
1. Preface
1.1. India Skills Pvt Ltd recognizes the need for protecting the interest of its clients & other stakeholders. Establishing an effective and efficient Grievance Redressal Mechanism will contribute to building a long-term relationship with its stakeholders and overall sustained development of the organization. Timely redressal of grievance results in higher stakeholders’ satisfaction which in turn leads to increased outreach of the clients/stakeholders and also helps in retaining the existing ones. It also serves as a Risk Management Tool in providing early warning signals for Operational Risks. Hence the Client/stakeholders Grievance Redressal Policy and Procedure document are aimed at minimizing incidences of client complaints and grievances through proper service delivery and review mechanism and to ensure its prompt redressal.
1.2. The Code of Conduct of ISPL lays down guidelines for general ethical behaviors of staff and professionalism. All employees of ISPL should adhere to professional behavior in interaction both within the organization as well as with the clients and external parties.
1.3. The Fair Practice Code of ISPL lays down guidelines for fair practices with respect to stakeholders in Assessments.
1.4. Towards this end, ISPL has put in place Stakeholders Grievance Redressal Policy which is based on the following principles:
1.4.1. To provide a channel of communication of their grievances/complaints/ feedback/ suggestions.
1.4.2. To educate all the stakeholders on the grievance redressal mechanism.
1.4.3. To ensure that the stakeholders are treated fairly at all times.
1.4.4. To ensure that stakeholders are protected against fraud, deception, or unethical practices.
1.4.5. To resolve complaints speedily.
1.4.6. To consistently assess the impact to improve the Assessments.
1.5. Accordingly, the stakeholder’s Grievance Redressal Policy has been formulated with a view to providing a mechanism for stakeholders of the organization to approach the Grievance Redressal Officer of the Company.
1.6. The policy is not the route for taking up a grievance about a personal situation.
2. Coverage of the Policy
Stakeholders Grievance can be filed in case of client dissatisfaction/complaint as described below:
2.1. Pilferage of confidential /personal information of the stakeholders.
2.2. Breach of Code of Conduct of the company
2.3. Breach of Fair Practices of the company
2.4. Assessment Centre-related issues like Assessor/Proctors being too dominant, demanding bribes or other favors, or influencing outcomes of the assessments. There could be other issues like the misdemeanor of the Assessor/Proctor.
2.5. Incident/possible incident of sexual harassment.
2.6. Policy should not be used to bring to light personal matters of another person who is in no way connected to the organization.
3. Procedure for filing Grievances
Every attempt must be made by the ISPL staff so that complaints do not arise. However, all field staff must clearly inform the TP’S/Candidates about the stakeholder’s grievance procedure. The field staff must make every attempt to resolve grievances at their level.
3.1. Center Meetings/Branch (3daysFO/BM+3daysDM/AM):
3.1.1. All Stakeholders can make complaints to the Assessment Quality monitoring manager/Operations Coordination Executive in Corporate Office: These inquiries will be forwarded to the GM Operations for follow-up and resolution. The issues raised by the VTP/Assessor/Proctors are resolved within 3 days at the regional office level. If the complaint is against the Field Staff it should be reported to the GM Operations.
3.1.2. The complaints are recorded in the stakeholder’s Complaint Register along with the name, the group no. and phone no. of the client and are addressed at the Branch Level. If unaddressed and in case it is beyond the scope of his/her authority the Assessment Coordination Manager at regional offices forwards the request to the General Manager/CRM/HR Manager. The District/Area Assessment Coordination Manager forwards it to the Grievance Redressal Committee at the Head Office if it is beyond the scope of his activities.
3.2. Written Complaint:
3.2.1. All stakeholder’s complaints are presented to the Grievance Redressal Committee once in 15 days by the Area Manager/DM or the audit team and after a complaint is received where the Grievance Redressal Committee does the investigation into the matters raised by the client.
3.2.2. The client can write a complaint and post it to the following address: Grievance Redressal Officer
India Skills Pvt. Ltd.
C-146/147, Lajpat Nagar-1, Delhi 110024, India
3.2.3. The stakeholder depending on the complaint can also email the written complaint to
grievance@indiaskills.edu.in
3.3. The stakeholders can call on 099585 88980.
The same is recorded by the person responsible which is reviewed and presented to the grievance redressal committee for redressal of grievances.
4. Communication of Grievance Redressal Mechanism
4.1. Grievance Redressal Mechanism, is prominently displayed in the Offices.
4.2. Regional Assessment Coordination Managers & Operations Team at Head office inform clients about the Grievance Redressal Mechanism before and during every assessment in both verbal and written communications.
4.3. Supervisors also inform clients about the Grievance Redressal Mechanism every time they visit clients on Monitoring visits.
4.4. Name of the GRO and Assessment Coordination officers, email id, and Toll contact number are printed on every assessment confirmation and scheduling mail.
4.5. Staff is trained about the need to ensure that all stakeholders are aware of the Grievance Redressal Mechanism.
5. Process of Grievance Redressal Mechanism/ Escalation process
5.1. Branch (FO/BM):
5.1.1. Assessment Coordination Manager records the complaints in the branch Complaint Register. Regional assessment coordination manager records all complaints/Grievances notified by the VTP/Assessor/Proctor/Candidate during his center visits in the complaint register and takes steps to resolve the same time and efficiently.
5.1.2. If complaints are not resolved it needs to be escalated to the Head office level within 7 days.
5.2. Head Office:
5.3.1. All complaints directly received at Head Office through a letter, email, phone call, or through Regional Office to be addressed weekly by a team consisting of Audit Head, GM Ops, and Managing Director. They would be responsible to do a thorough analysis of the complaints and ensure necessary instructions are given to various teams for speedy redressal and follow-up till the final redressal of the complaint.
5.3.2. Each stakeholder is given a complaint id for easy retrieval of complaints and follow-up. HO to ensure that all complaints received directly or through the Regional Office need to be resolved within 30 days.
5.3.3. They are also responsible to compile the monthly Grievance Redressal report received from regional offices and Head Offices and present it to the Grievance Redressal Officer in the Committee held monthly tentatively on the second Saturday of the month.
5.3.4. A quarterly report on the complaints received and the turnaround time for redressing those complaints is submitted to the Audit Committee of the Board.
5.3.5. All complaints related to sexual harassment to be forwarded to the sexual harassment committee. Please refer to the Policy against Sexual harassment of women at the workplace.
5.3.6. All fraud/suspected fraud-related issues are escalated for further investigation to the Head of Audit/Risk Management and action is taken against erring employees. The complaints should be forwarded to md@indiaskills.edu.in.
6. Closure of the Complaint
All complaints ensured to be closed within one month.
7. Policy Review
The Policy shall be reviewed annually.
Grievance/Complaint booking Form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScR0KLXDH-WnooF_eBOSK-7I9QGP2Q9G5BAkbqljdA4L2xkOg/viewform
SOP for Grievance Redressal at ISPL
SOP FOR COMPLAINTS FROM ALL STAKEHOLDERS
POSH- Prevention of sexual harassment - policy and committee
CODE OF CONDUCT ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT
India Skills Private Limited
- Be it known to all members of India Skills Pvt. Ltd. that Sexual harassment is a serious criminal offense that can destroy human dignity and freedom. In an effort to promote the well-being of all woman employees of the M/S India Skills Private Limited at the workplace, the following code of conduct has been prescribed.
- Sexual harassment will include such unwelcome sexually determined behavior by any person either individually or in association with other persons or by a person in authority whether directly or by implication such as:-
(a) Eve-teasing.
(b) Unsavory remarks
(c) Jokes causing or likely to cause awkwardness or embarrassment
(d) Innuendos and taunts
(e) Gender-based insults or sexist remarks
(f) Unwelcome sexual overtone in any manner such as over telephone
(g) Obnoxious telephone calls) and the like.
(h) Touching or brushing against any part of the body and the like
(i) Displaying pornographic or other offensive or derogatory pictures, cartoons, pamphlets, or sayings.
(j) Forcible physical touch or molestation.
(k) Physical contact and advances.
(l) A demand or request for sexual favors.
(m) Sexually colored remarks.
(n) Showing pornography.
(o) Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.
(p) Physical confinement against one’s will and any other act likely to violate one’s privacy and includes any act or conduct by a person in authority and belonging to one sex which denies or would deny equal opportunity in pursuit of career development or otherwise making the environment at the workplace hostile or intimidating to person belonging to the other sex, only on the ground of sex.
Explanation: – Where any comment, act, or conduct is committed against any person and such person has a reasonable apprehension that,
(i) It can be humiliating, may constitute a health and safety problem. OR
(ii) It is discriminatory, as for instance, when the woman has reasonable grounds to believe that her objection would disadvantage her in connection with her employment or study, including or promotion or advancement or when it creates a hostile environment. Or
(iii) It would result in adverse consequences if she does not consent to the conduct or raises any objection, it shall be deemed to be sexual harassment.
(iv) Eve-Teasing: – Eve-teasing will include any person willfully and indecently exposing his person in such a manner as to be seen by other employees or use indecent language or behave indecently or in a disorderly manner in the workplace. It will also include any word, gesture, or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman by making any sound or gesture or exhibit any object intending that such word or sound shall be heard or that such gesture or object shall be seen by such women or intrudes upon the privacy of a woman employee.
(v) Sexual harassment of an employee means the use of authority by any person in charge of the management or any person employed by it to exploit the sexuality or sexual identity of a subordinate employee to harass her in a manner that prevents or impairs the employee’s full utilization of employment benefits or opportunities. It also includes behavior that covertly or overtly uses the power inherent in the status of the employer or the head of the institution or management to affect negatively an employee’s work experience or career opportunities and/or to threaten, coerce or intimidate an employee to accept sexual advances or making employment decision affecting the individual or create an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.
As per the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court of India dated 13-08-1997, relating to sexual harassment of women workers at workplaces, the Management has reconstituted a Complaints Committee of India Skills Pvt. Ltd. to deal with the complaints of sexual harassment, pertaining to all Staff of India Skills Pvt. Ltd., Pan India Jurisdiction with effect from 30th April 2018 and updated on 1st April 2021.
- Pawanjit Singh Ahluwalia (Chairman)
- Major General Deepak Sapra (MD)
- Ms. Sarabjeet Randhawa( GM Ops)
- Rahul Chaudhary(HR)
- Ms. Kamia Baloni (EA to Director)
- Jasjit Singh Ahluwali (JMD)
- Ghulam Sarwar (Legal)
- Pooja Gupta
- Diwakar Prajapati (IT Support)
The main role of the Complaints Committee:-
- It shall be the duty of the Complaint Committee to prevent or deter the commission for any act of sexual harassment at all the work sites of the Company i.e. at Corporate Office as well as at Zonal / Regional / Branch offices.
- The Complaint Committee shall take appropriate steps to prevent sexual harassment of any nature. Express prohibition of sexual harassment should be notified to all the departments, Zonal/Regional Offices from time to time and also be displayed for the general information of the employees and evaluated in an appropriate manner periodically.
- Appropriate working conditions should be provided in respect of work, leisure, health, and hygiene to ensure that there is no hostile environment towards women at the workplace and no woman employee should have reasonable grounds to believe that she is disadvantaged in connection with her employment in the organization.
- To create an appropriate complaint mechanism in the organization for addressing the complaint made by the victim and such a mechanism should ensure time-bound treatment of complaints. The complaint mechanism should be adequate to provide, where necessary, a special counselor or other support services, including the maintenance of confidentiality.
- To ensure that no employee shall outrage or insult the modesty of a female employee the women employees should not be treated as sex objects and feel unsafe in the Company premises.
- The company always believes & follows the rule, Right of equity as per Article15 of the Indian Constitution.
- Third-Party Harassment: Where sexual harassment occurs as a result of an act or omission by any third party or outside the employer and the persons in charge shall take all steps necessary and reasonable to assist the affected person in terms of support and preventive action.
Annual Report: The Complaints Committee shall prepare an Annual Report giving a full account of its activities during the previous year and forward a copy thereof to the Head of the HR who intern shall forward the same to the government department concerned with its comments.
- Preventive Steps & General Awareness.
(a) Express prohibition of sexual harassment as defined above at the workplace should be notified, published, and even circulated inappropriate ways.
(b) The Rules/Regulations of Government and Public Sector bodies relating to conduct and discipline should include rules/regulations prohibiting sexual harassment and provide for appropriate penalties in such rules against the offender.
(c) Appropriate work conditions should be provided in respect of work, leisure health, and hygiene to further ensure that there is no hostile environment toward women at workplaces and no women employee should have reasonable grounds to believe that she is disadvantaged in connection with her employment.
Conducting Enquiry by the Complaints Committee:-
(i) Any person aggrieved shall prefer a complaint before the Complaints Committee at the earliest point of time and in any case within 15 days from the date of occurrence of the alleged incident.
(ii) The complaint shall contain all the material and relevant details concerning the alleged sexual harassment including the names of the contraveners and the complaint shall be addressed to the Complaints Committee.
(iii) If the complainant feels that she cannot disclose her identity for any Particular reason the complainant shall address the complaint to the CMD / JMD / VP and hand over the same in person or in a sealed cover. Upon receipt of such complaint, the CMD / JMD / VP shall retain the original complaint with him and send to the Complaints Committee a list of the complaint containing all material and relevant details other than the name of the complaint and other details which might disclose the identity of the complainant.
(iv) The Complaints Committee shall take immediate necessary action to cause an inquiry to be made discreetly or hold an inquiry, if necessary.
(v) The Complaints Committee shall, after examination of the complaint submits its recommendations to the CMD/JMD recommending the penalty to be imposed.
Disciplinary Action:
- The CMD/JMD upon receipt of the report from the Complaint Committee shall, after giving an opportunity of being heard to the person complained against, submit the case with the Committee’s recommendations to the Management for follow-up action.
- The Management shall confirm with or without modification the penalty recommended after duly following the prescribed procedure.
- Where the conduct of an employee amounts to misconduct in employment as defined in the relevant service rules the HOD-HR should initiate appropriate disciplinary action in accordance with the relevant rules.
- Where such conduct amounts to misconduct in employment as defined by the relevant service rules, appropriate disciplinary action should be initiated by the Complaints Committee / Management in accordance with those rules.
- Worker’s Initiative: Employees should be allowed to raise issues of sexual harassment at worker’s meeting and in other appropriate fore and it should be affirmatively discussed in periodical employer-employee meetings.
Criminal Proceedings.
(a) Where such conduct amounts to a specific offense under the Indian Penal Code or under any other law, the employer shall initiate appropriate action in accordance with law by making a complaint with the appropriate authority.
(b) In particular, it should ensure that victims or witnesses are not victimized or discriminated against while dealing with complaints of sexual harassment. The victim of sexual harassment should have the option to seek transfer of the perpetrator or their own transfer.
(c) Savings:-Nothing contained in this code shall prejudice any right available to the employee or prevent any person from seeking any legal remedy under the National Commission for Women Act 1990, Protection of Human Rights Commission Act 1993 or under any other law for the time being in force. Where such conduct amounts to a specific offense under the Indian Penal Code or under any other law, the Management shall initiate appropriate action in accordance with law by making a complaint with the appropriate authority. In particular, it should ensure that victims or witnesses are not victimized or discriminated against while dealing with complaints of sexual harassment. The victims of sexual harassment should have the option to seek transfer of the perpetrator or their own transfer.
Place: New Delhi
Date :
Name of the arbitrator / Lawyer – Mr.Ghulam Sarwar
Contact: – 8130694303
Helpline number: +91-011-42970372/ 095992 00907
