Harassment at Workplace Policy

1. Policy Statement

AEO Pakistan is committed to maintain a professional, respectful, and harassment-free work environment for all employees. Harassment, whether verbal, physical, emotional, psychological, or sexual, will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Every employee has the right to work in a safe and dignified environment, and AEO Pakistan pledges to protect and uphold this right.

2. Purpose

This policy aims to:

• Prevent harassment at the workplace.
• Provide a mechanism for prompt and confidential resolution of complaints.
• Promote awareness and foster a culture of mutual respect and accountability.

3. Scope

This policy applies to:

• All AEO Pakistan employees (full-time, part-time, contractual).
• Interns, consultants, vendors, and any person working in a professional capacity with AEO Enterprise.
• Work-related events, off-site meetings, training, travel, and testing at offsite venues

Harassment Definition

Harassment includes but is not limited to:

• Sexual/Physical Harassment: Inappropriate touching, gestures, comments, jokes, or messages/displaying or sharing sexually explicit material, Blocking someone’s path or invading personal space aggressively, destruction of personal property.
• Psychological/Verbal Harassment: Verbal abuse, bullying, humiliation, intimidation, spreading rumors, sarcasm, or threats.
• Misuse of authority or power to influence job decisions.
• Discriminatory Harassment: Harassment includes:(Racial, Gender-based, Religious, Disability-based, Age-based).

  Harassment can occur between individuals of the same or opposite gender and may not always be explicitly sexual in nature.

5. Complaint and Reporting Mechanism

• Employees may report incidents of harassment to the Harassment Inquiry Committee (HIC) or the HR department.
• Complaints must be submitted in writing (email or physical form), and should ideally be filed within 15 working days of the incident.
• Anonymous complaints may be reviewed at the committee’s discretion if sufficient evidence is available.

6. Investigation Procedure

• Upon receiving a complaint, the HIC will initiate the inquiry process within 3 working days.
• Both parties (complainant and accused) will be given the opportunity to present their case.
• The investigation must be concluded within 30 calendar days.
• A final report with findings and recommendations will be submitted to the Resident Director/CEO.
• Based on the findings, appropriate disciplinary action (verbal/written warning, suspension, termination) may be taken.
• If a complaint is received with complete evidence, it may lead to immediate termination without any further inquiry.

7. Protection Against Retaliation

AEO Enterprise strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against individuals who report harassment in good faith or participate in an investigation. Retaliation will be treated as a separate disciplinary offense.

8. Confidentiality

All complaints, witness testimonies, and investigation records will be kept confidential and disclosed strictly on a need-to-know basis.

9. False or Malicious Complaints

Any complaint found to be intentionally false, fabricated, or malicious will lead to disciplinary action against the complainant. However, inability to prove a claim does not automatically imply false intent.

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Harassment Inquiry Committee:

• Chairperson-HR: General Manager from Head Office
• Member 1: Branch Head
• Member 2: (Sr. Female in case of Male Branch Head/Sr. Member from another Department)
• Member 3: Department Head

The Resident Director will be kept updated from the initial stage of the inquiry till the outcome. The committee will serve for a fixed term of two years.

Committee Responsibilities

• Receive and acknowledge complaints.
• Conduct unbiased inquiries within timelines.
• Maintain neutrality, professionalism, and confidentiality.
• Recommend disciplinary action or corrective measures.
• Submit reports to the CEO.