Purpose
The Guardian Service recognises the positive impact acting corporately and socially responsible (CSR) has on employee wellbeing and morale.
We take our social responsibilities very seriously and are committed to conducting our dealings with suppliers to the highest standards of quality and integrity. We source all services and products within the UK – locally.
We are conscious of the impact our business has on the environment and we expect our suppliers to comply with regulations and legislation and be respectful to the environment. We are committed as an organization to minimizing our carbon footprint.
This Charter sets out the principles for the behavioural standard that The Guardian Service expects from all its suppliers, and their supply chains, to meet the principles set out in this Charter. This is a material consideration in selecting and evaluating our new and existing supplier relationships.
Ethical Responsibility
Equal Opportunities
GSL works with suppliers that not only share out values, but also share out commitments to diversity and inclusion. We believe that partnering with diverse suppliers creates a culture of equality that allows everyone to advance and thrive. We expect the same level of integrity and business conduct from our third parties and their personnel as we do our own people and we will not tolerate direct or indirect discrimination against any person on grounds of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation whether in the field of recruitment, terms and conditions of employment, career progression, training, transfer o-r dismissal.
Tackling Economic Inequality
GSDL is proudly an accredited Living Wage Employer and voluntarily chooses to pay the real Living Wage because we believe that a hard day's work deserves a fair day's pay. This commitment applies to not only directly employed staff but also to our third party contracted staff. The real Living Wage is higher than the government's minimum, or National Living Wage, and is an independently calculated hourly rate of pay that is based on the actual cost of living. It is calculated each year and is announced by the Living Wage Foundation as part of Living Wage week. GSL suppliers are encouraged to promote fair pay practices via implementing the Living Wage.
Anti Bribery & Corruption
GSL expects its suppliers to conduct themselves ethically and morally and respect local laws. GSL will not engage in any form of bribery and corruption. GSL expects that is suppliers will not engage in or in any way encourage bribery including but not limited to acts of bribery that are (i) direct or through a third party, (ii) of a public official or a private individual, (iii) financial or in some other form; and (iv) relates to past, present, or future performance or non-performance of a function or activity.
Labour
GSL Supports all initiatives to eliminate human trafficking, all forms of forced or compulsory labour and any other form of modern slavery. GSL Therefore expects its suppliers to do that same. IT is GSL's view that suppliers have a key role to play in combating these crimes and must take all possible steps to ensure that these are not taking place in any of their supply chains or their own operations. GSL will not enter into relationships with suppliers involved in human trafficking, modern slavery, or forced labour including any corporal punishment in the workplace.
Environment
GSL central office is a shared office accommodation utilising the WeWork facilities and as a shared facility doing so further reduces our overall carbon footprint. We expect our suppliers to promote greater environmental responsibility and support us in the use of goods and services which help mitigate our environmental impact, as well as better managing and utilising resources such as energy, paper, water and waste. To this end, we encourage our suppliers to monitor and continually look for ways to minimise waster and emissions from their operations, products and services, to manage the social impacts of their activities in benefit to local communities, and to protect the environment in compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations.
Environment
GSL in an additional effort to off-set our carbon footprint, is supporting Brynk with a commitment to grow a Guardian forest with a pledge to plant 2,000 trees by the end of 2024 which will support restoration of ecosystems and biodiversity, alleviate poverty for vulnerable communities and store CO2 in their trunks, roots and branches. We are committing to a zero carbon footprint by 2030 and in order to support our initiatives in their area we will use Brynk's carbon calculator to publish our results on an annual basis.