Country Road Group (CRG) has commissioned an independent review of sexual harassment and workplace misconduct policies.
The review follows an external investigation into the handling of CRG team member complaints in relation to alleged sexual harassment. Parent company Woolworths Holdings Limited (WHL) has confirmed the retail group will be implementing a number of actions to improve its complaints handling process.
In a statement issued to Ragtrader, WHL CEO Roy Bagattini said the business has a zero-tolerance policy for misconduct.
“I am deeply disappointed that some team members did not feel fully supported when raising complaints about inappropriate behaviour. It is clear that we did not meet our own expectations, let alone those of our employees. We have zero tolerance for sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour in our organisation, and are fully committed to taking any actions needed to ensure an environment where all our team members feel safe, valued and included.”
CRG will be implementing a number of actions to improve its complaints handling process going forward.
These include an end-to-end review of the complaint handling and reporting process; the launch of a refreshed sexual harassment training program to raise awareness and understanding of the complaint management process; and the commissioning of an independent review of sexual harassment and workplace misconduct policies and processes.