Code of Ethics

The owners of H30 has adopted a Code of Ethics which is continuously reviewed and updated as required. This Code defines H30’s main ethical standards of transparency, responsibility, integrity, fairness, accountability and respect, particularly in H30’s daily interactions with all stakeholders and the environment. This code is used as a benchmark against which to manage the business, taking into consideration the social, political and operational environments in which the business conducts itself.


As a new player in the branded consumer goods industry, it is imperative to start off by promoting ethical business practices, committing all H30 employees, consumers, producers and other stakeholders we transact with to the following ethical standards:


RESPECT

Respect requires acknowledging others’ rights and treating others with dignity H30 and its employees commit to:

  • maintaining a work culture that treats all employees fairly and with respect and provides equal opportunities based on merit and redress the imbalances of the past by developing specific principles to achieve social and economic equity in line with the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment and BEE compliance requirements;
  • treating all customers, suppliers, colleagues and other stakeholders with the appropriate dignity and acknowledge their basic human rights as set out in chapter 2 (the Bill of Rights) of the South African Constitution;
  • refraining from discrimination or harassment based on race, colour, religion, national origin, age, physical disability, medical condition, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or any other legally protected status;
  • refraining from any forms of sexual harassment; duly consider the impact of our business decisions on the broader community and the environment; and ensuring a safe and healthy work environment.


INTEGRITY

Integrity builds trust which is necessary for a business to form strong relationships with all stakeholders, enabling us to make better, more effective internal decisions. Integrity means acting consistently with our values and doing the right thing in every situation, public or private, even when it may be inconvenient or uncomfortable. All H30 employees are expected to act with the highest integrity. H30 and its employees commit to:

  • being open, honest and direct with each other;
  • doing what we commit to do and to always act in good faith;
  • being transparent in the way we conduct business;
  • being truthful, honest and timely in all our disclosures and external reporting;
  • not tolerating activities that are illegal such as corruption, theft, fraud and uncompetitive behaviour or in direct contravention of H30 ’s policies and monitoring any such activities as recommended by the OECD; and
  • not taking unfair advantage of anyone through manipulation, concealment, abuse of privileged information, misrepresentation of material facts, or any other unfair practice;


FAIRNESS

Fairness requires the balancing of various stakeholder interests to ensure that everyone gets what is rightfully due to them. H30 and its employees commit to:

  • fair competition, avoid illegal anti-competitive activities with competitors such as price fixing, terms of sale, allocation of markets or customers, etc. applying fair labour practices;
  • conducting negotiations with stakeholders at arm’s length and in good faith, with appropriate disclosure of any potential conflict of interest as required in terms of the Companies Act of 2008 and as required in terms of this Policy; and not placing themselves in a position where their own interests conflict with those of H30 or a stakeholder.


RESPONSIBILITY

Responsibility requires H30 to take ownership of, and being accountable for, our acts and omissions. It means that we take care of what is entrusted to us, recognising the economic, social and natural environments we operate in. H30 and its employees commit to:

  • exercising our obligations with due care, diligence and skill;
  • practising good governance in our business strategies;
  • remaining within allowed boundaries of legislation, regulations and H30 policies;
  • maintaining adequate books and records to accurately represent our business in reasonable detail in compliance with legislation and H30 ’s policies;
  • protecting our confidential information such as recipes, future plans, etc., critical to our continued growth and ability to compete;
  • taking care when handling price sensitive information (Security Services Act, Act 36 of 2004);
  • protecting personal information of customers, suppliers and employees from unauthorised use;
  • a business strategy that should be economically, socially and environmentally sustainable; and
  • responsible utilisation of our natural resources.

Reporting of suspected unethical behaviour In order for H30 to maintain high ethical standards, it is the duty of every H30 employee to take due care in the way they conduct themselves and to report any concerns of perceived unethical behaviour, such that the H30 can conduct the necessary investigations to confirm or refute allegations, which would enable H30 to take appropriate corrective action.


In the first instance, employees should raise any concerns they have in this regard with their immediate superior, Branch Manager or Departmental Head. Where an employee is not satisfied with the response, they should notify their Supervisor who will treat all such notifications in utmost confidence and be responsible for addressing any issues raised. Notwithstanding the above, it is of the utmost importance for employees to be able to distinguish between the raising of ethical issues on the one hand, and the lodging of a formal grievance on the other. Normally a grievance will relate to a problem which directly affects the employee or employees, and the company’s grievance procedure is the formal channel of addressing grievances. It will neither be in the employee’s nor company’s interest if normal complaints/grievances are channeled through the ethical line, and even more so, should the aggrieved employee elects to remain anonymous.


CONCLUSION

This Ethics Policy supersedes all previous ethics policies. Adherence to these standards is a condition of employment with H30, but this requirement of behaviour does not create an employment contract or an offer of employment. It should also be noted that the Ethics Policy is not all-encompassing. H30 retains the right to modify this policy or any of its sections at any time, to make it more adaptable to the evolving needs of the H30, its employees, customers or applicable laws.