SAWDUST CITY BREWING COMPANY INC.

Code of Conduct

About Us

Sawdust City is located in Gravenhurst Ontario, the gateway to Muskoka. Sawdust City   is dedicated to the art and science of creating exceptional craft beers. We produce traditional beer in a variety of styles, but there is nothing traditional about the flavour. Our talented brewers create award-winning exciting beers that expand the borders of traditional flavour profiles.


In addition to our core beer brands, we brew exceptional seasonal offerings, exciting limited batch brews, barrel-aged and experimental beers. Of course, all of our beers are all-natural and made with only the finest ingredients. At Sawdust City we don’t take ourselves too seriously, but we take our beer very seriously!

Mission Statement

Sawdust City employees strive to work as a team to create great products and great customer experiences in an environment of respect for each other and the company that we represent.

Diversity Statement

Sawdust City believes that ensuring diversity is fundamental to its future growth and progress and is an integral part of its business activities.  

We hire great people who reflect the diversity in our community, not just because it’s the right thing to do but because it makes us a better and stronger company. If you share our values and passion for the art and science of exceptional Craft Beer, you will find a home here at Sawdust City Brewing Company.

We believe that success happens where new ideas can flourish in an environment that is rich in diversity and a place where people from various backgrounds can work together.  At Sawdust City we know that an environment that fosters diversity is the kind of environment which brings out the untapped potential that lies in our workforce and stimulates innovation and Corporation growth.

Our diversity mission is to continue to be a Corporation with the following characteristics:

  • Universal recognition by everyone with whom we do business as a Corporation committed to diversity and synonymous with improving the opportunities of disadvantaged groups in employment;
  • A workforce that fully reflects the requisite skills available in the relevant employment market;
  • A preferred employer and vendor for all cultural groups in the population by virtue of our reputation in this field;
  • An environment where every team member understands and voluntarily values diversity in all areas of practice; and
  • An environment where all team members have the opportunity to reach their highest potential.

Recognizing and encouraging individual contribution within a team environment is fundamental to Sawdust City and its employment policies.  This philosophy is found in all aspects of employment such as recruitment, compensation, training, promotion, transfer and benefits.  All team members at Sawdust City will be treated as individuals according only to their ability to meet job requirements, and without regard to factors such as race, sex, colour, ancestry, place of origin, ethnic origin, same-sex partnership status, sexual orientation, age, disability, citizenship, family status or marital status, creed, gender identity or gender expression, or any other factors that are legislatively protected. Any kind of discrimination or harassment based upon these factors is neither permitted nor condoned, and above all, will not be tolerated under any circumstances. 

Respect in the Workplace 

Sawdust City recognizes the dignity and worth of every team member, and to that end believes in providing and maintaining a work environment in which all team members are free from workplace violence, harassment, and discrimination.  This policy applies to all team members and covers all forms of violence, harassment, and all forms of discrimination prohibited under human rights legislation.

Definitions

Workplace” means any place where business or work-related activities are conducted.  It includes, but is not limited to, the physical work premises, work-related social functions (social events, golf games, etc.), work assignments outside the Corporation’s office, work-related travel, and work-related conferences or training sessions.

“Violence” means: 

  1. The exercise of physical force by a person against a worker, in the workplace, that causes or could cause physical injury to the worker;
  2. An attempt to exercise physical force against a worker, in the workplace, that could cause physical injury to the worker; and/or
  3. A statement or behaviour that is reasonable for a worker to interpret as a threat to exercise physical force against the worker, in the workplace, that could cause physical injury to the worker.

Please note that this definition of violence also includes acts or threats of domestic violence against a team member that may create a risk of danger to the team member or others in the workplace.

“Discrimination” means the differential treatment of an individual on the basis of race, sex, colour, ancestry, place of origin, ethnic origin, same-sex partnership status, sexual orientation, age, disability, citizenship, family status or marital status, creed, gender identity or gender expression or any other factor that is legislatively protected (“Prohibited Grounds”).

Harassment” means engaging in a course of vexatious comments or conduct that is known, or ought reasonably to be known, to be unwelcome.  It may include unwelcome, unwanted, offensive, or objectionable conduct that may have the effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment; interfering with an individual’s work performance; adversely affecting an individual’s employment relationship; and/or denying an individual’s dignity and respect.  Harassment may result from one incident or a series of incidents.  It may be directed at specific individuals or groups.  

Examples of harassment and discriminatory conduct include, but are not limited to:

  1. Humiliating a team member in front of co-workers;
  2. Subjecting an individual to unwelcome remarks or jokes; 
  3. Consistent subjection of an individual to practical jokes or ridicule; 
  4. The making of any work-related decision (including matters of hiring, promoting, compensating, work assignments, evaluations, training, or job security) not on the basis of merit, but on the basis of any of the Prohibited Grounds;
  5. Comments which are intended, or that ought reasonably to be known, to promote stereotyping on any of the Prohibited Grounds;
  6. Jokes or comments which draw attention, for example, to a person’s disability, age, ethnic, racial, or religious background or affiliation, or which draw attention to a person’s gender or sexual orientation with the effect of undermining such person’s role in a professional or business environment or that by their nature are known or ought reasonably to be known to be embarrassing or offensive; and
  7. Derogatory remarks, verbal abuse or threats directed towards members of one gender or regarding one’s sexual orientation or with respect to a person’s or group’s ethnic, racial, or religious background or affiliation.

Harassment includes “Sexual Harassment” which means:

  1. Engaging in a course of vexatious comment or conduct against a worker in a workplace because of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, where the course of comment or conduct is known or ought reasonably to be known to be unwelcome; or
  2. Making a sexual solicitation or advance where the person making the solicitation or advance is in a position to confer, grant or deny a benefit or advancement to the worker and the person knows or ought reasonably to know that the solicitation or advance is unwelcome.

Types of unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature which may constitute Sexual Harassment include but are not limited to:

  1. Propositions of physical intimacy;
  2. Bragging about sexual prowess;
  3. Leering or inappropriate staring;
  4. Sexually degrading words or displays of suggestive pictures;
  5. Inquiries or comments about a person’s sex life or sexual behaviour; and 
  6. Sexual jokes or stories causing embarrassment or offence, that are told or carried out after the person telling the story or joke has been advised that they are embarrassing or offensive or that by their very nature are known or ought reasonably to be known to be embarrassing or offensive.

Policy Statement

All team members in the workplace have a right to work in an environment free from violence, harassment, and discrimination. The Corporation will not tolerate violent, harassing or discriminatory behaviour from team members, clients / customers, visitors, guests, or any others that attend at the workplace

Retaliation or reprisals are prohibited against any individual who has complained under this policy or has provided information regarding a complaint.  Any retaliation or reprisals are subject to immediate corrective action, up to and including termination for cause.  Alleged retaliation or reprisals are subject to the same complaint procedures and penalties as complaints of violence, discrimination, and harassment.

The Corporation recognizes that individuals may find it difficult to come forward with a complaint under this policy because of concerns of confidentiality.  Therefore, all complaints concerning workplace violence, harassment, or discrimination, as well as the names of parties involved, shall be treated as confidential to the furthest extent possible in law. The Corporation’s obligation to conduct an investigation into the alleged complaint may require limited disclosure.  As it pertains to violence, where the Corporation believes there to be imminent danger to a team member, it may divulge such confidential information as is reasonably necessary.  No record of the complaint will be maintained on the personnel file of the complainant.  At the conclusion of each complaint process, all related documentation will be maintained for safe-keeping in a confidential manner by the Human Resources Department in the related “Respect in The Workplace” file.  

Responsibilities 

Each and every team member is responsible for creating and maintaining a violence-free, harassment-free, and discrimination-free workplace.  All team members are requested to report promptly when they become aware of alleged actions or complaints of violence, discrimination, or harassment. This includes a responsibility for team members to report any alleged actions or complaints of domestic violence that occur outside the workplace and that may create a risk of danger to themselves or others in the workplace. Managers are responsible for providing a workplace that is free from violence, harassment, and discrimination. This responsibility includes actively promoting a positive work environment and intervening when problems occur.

Complaints Against Third Parties

The Corporation recognizes that a team member may be subject to violence, harassment, or discrimination by clients/customers or by others who conduct business with the Corporation. A team member who believes that he or she has been subjected to such conduct by a person who does not work for the Corporation may seek the advice of his/her manager or a member of the senior management team or his/her designate who will take whatever action is appropriate in the circumstances.

For more information please email info@sawdustcitybeer.com