Musterhubs is an organisation committed to doing good where-ever possible. We advocate and practise social awareness and positive employee relations, and make a commitment to  giving as much as we can back to local businesses and the community. It may only be small, but we want to feel like we are doing our bit to promote a better world.

Here is an outline of our Ethical Policy but do get in touch if you want to know more about our work: connect@musterhubs.com

1.Purpose

  1. Musterhubs (“the Company”) is committed to the practice of responsible corporate behaviour.
  2. Through its business practices, the Company seeks to protect and promote the human rights and basic freedoms of all its employees and agents.
  3. Further the Company is committed to protecting the rights of all of those whose work contributes to the success of the Company, including those employees and agents of suppliers to the Company.
  4. The Company is also committed to eliminating bribery and corruption. It is essential that all employees and persons associated with the Company adhere to this policy and abstain from giving or receiving bribes of any form.
  5. This policy is non-exhaustive, and all aspects of the Company’s business should be considered in the spirit of this policy.
  6. Scope of the code

2.1 The Code applies to all areas of musterhubs business and to its direct Suppliers . musterhubs requires all direct Suppliers to observe the provisions of this Code and requires that such Suppliers, in turn, obtain similar compliance with its provisions from their Suppliers. All parties to whom this Code applies are required to comply with applicable national and international laws. Where the provisions of this Code afford greater protection than national law, the terms of this Code prevail.

2.2. Policy Objective  The objectives of the Code are:  to set out a clear statement of musterhubs policy, and  to promote the adoption and improvement of ethical practices globally, and  to implement effective processes for improvement of trade practices

2.3. Compliance with the code  musterhubs recognises that its Suppliers may not be able to achieve all the standards laid out in this Code immediately but is willing to engage with Suppliers who:  have implemented, or are willing to implement, appropriate and workable processes for raising standards to be compliant with this Code within an agreed period; and  are able to demonstrate a responsible and transparent approach to their working and general practices; and  have demonstrated an ongoing commitment to improving working and ethical standards.

2.4 The Code

musterhubs core requirements 

(Critical Failure Points) musterhubs will not engage in business with Suppliers who do not meet our 10 Core Requirements and musterhubs will be entitled to terminate any contract with any Supplier who is found to be non-compliant with any of the Core Requirements. Such termination on the part of musterhubs may be without notice and shall be without liability of any description on the part of musterhubs (whether to the Supplier or any third party contracted by the Supplier).

2.5 musterhubs Core Requirements are as follows;

  1. Suppliers must not use any form of forced, bonded or involuntary labour, and workers must not be obliged to lodge identity papers or pay any deposit as a condition of work.
  2. Workers must not be subject to physical or verbal abuse or threats or intimidation of any description.
  3. Workers must not be required to work extreme hours or work without adequate rest periods.
  4. Suppliers must not use workers under the age of 15, or the minimum legal working age in the country in question, if higher than 15. Suppliers must accept the principles of remediation of child and under age workers, and where such labour is discovered Suppliers must establish and implement appropriate remediation for such workers and introduce effective systems to prevent the use of child labour in the future.
  5. Factories and work sites used by Suppliers must be safe and hygienic with an adequate number of safe and accessible fire exits from all buildings including living accommodation and workers must have access to drinking water.
  6. Suppliers must pay wages sufficient to meet basic needs and to provide some discretionary income.

7 Suppliers must maintain proper and accurate employment records including calculation of pay and hours worked and Suppliers must be transparent and cooperative as regards the inspection of employment records.

  1. Suppliers must not engage in bribery, corruption or other similar unethical practices in order to gain competitive advantage.

 

  1. Human Rights
    1. The Company is vehemently opposed to the use of slavery in all forms; cruel, inhuman or degrading punishments; and any attempt to control or reduce freedom of thought, conscience and religion.
    2. The Company will ensure that all of its employees, agents and contractors are entitled to their human rights as set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998.
    3. The Company will not enter into any business arrangement with any person, company or organisation which fails to uphold the human rights of its workers or who breach the human rights of those affected by the organisation’s activities.

 

  1. Workers’ Rights
  2. The Company is committed to complying with all relevant employment legislation and regulations. The Company regards such regulations and legislation as the minimum rather than the recommended standard.
  3. No worker should be discriminated against on the basis of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion or beliefs, gender reassignment, marital status or pregnancy. All workers should be treated equally. Workers with the same experience and qualifications should receive equal pay for equal work.
  4. No worker should be prevented from joining or forming a staff association or trade union, nor should any worker suffer any detriment as a result of joining, or failing to join, any such organisation.
  5. Workers should be aware of the terms and conditions of their employment or engagement from the outset. In particular, workers must be made aware of the wage that they receive, when and how it is to be paid, the hours that they must work and any legal limit which exists for their protection and any overtime provisions. Workers should also be allowed such annual leave, sick leave, maternity / paternity leave and such other leave as is granted by legislation as a minimum.
  6. The Company does not accept any corporal punishment, harassment in any form, or bullying in any form.

 

  1. Environmental Issues
  2. The Company is committed to keeping the environmental impact of its activities to a minimum.
  3. As an absolute minimum, the Company will ensure that it meets all applicable environmental laws in whichever jurisdiction it may be operating.

 

  1. Conflicts of Interest
  2. The Company holds as fundamental to its success the trust and confidence of those with whom it deals, including clients, suppliers and employees. Conflicts of interest potentially undermine the relationship of the Company with its partners.
  3. All officers, employees and representatives of the Company are expected to act honestly and within the law.

 

  1. Information and Confidentiality
  2. Information received by employees, contractors or agents of the Company will not be used for any personal gain, nor will it be used for any purpose beyond that for which it was given.
  3. The Company will process any personal data collected in accordance with its Data Protection Policy.

 

  1. Shareholders and Investors
  1. The Company, its officers, employees and representatives are committed to ensuring that no act or omission which is within their power and which would have the effect of deliberately, negligently or recklessly misleading the shareholders, creditors or other investors in the Company occurs.

 

  1. Suppliers and Partners
    1. The Company expects all suppliers and partners to work towards and uphold similar ethical and moral standards.
    2. The Company will investigate the ethical record of potential new suppliers before entering into any agreement. Further, the Company reserves the right to request information from suppliers regarding the production and sources of goods supplied.
    3. The Company reserves the right to withdraw from any agreement or other arrangement with any supplier or partner who is found to have acted in contravention of the spirit or principles of this Ethical Policy.

 

  1. Bribery and Corruption
  2. The Company is fundamentally opposed to any acts of bribery and to the making of facilitation payments as defined by the Bribery Act 2010.
  3. Employees and any other persons associated with the Company such as agents, subsidiaries and business partners are not permitted to either offer or receive any type of bribe and/or facilitation payment.
  4. All employees are encouraged to report any suspicion of corruption or bribery within the Company.
  5. In the event that an individual reports suspected instances of bribery, the Company will process any personal data collected in accordance with its Data Protection Policy. Data collected will be held securely and accessed by, and disclosed to, individuals only for the purposes of dealing with the report of bribery.
  6. Should any employee or associated person be in doubt when receiving or issuing gifts and hospitality, he/she must check this with their relevant line Manager.
  7. The Company uses its reasonable endeavours to implement the guidance principles on bribery management that are published, from time to time, by Secretary of State in accordance with Section 9 of the Bribery Act 2010.
  8. If an employee or associated person is found guilty of giving or receiving a bribe, he/she will be personally criminally liable and may be subject to disciplinary action.
  9. Anyone found guilty of bribery, will be responsible for bearing any related remedial costs such as losses, court fees or expenses.