RACIAL AND RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE POLICY
Section 1 Commitment
1.1 The Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club is committed to an environment which promotes racial and religious tolerance by prohibiting certain conduct and providing a means of redress for victims of racial and religious vilification and/or racial discrimination.
1.2 The Club is bound by the Anti Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW), the Discrimination Act 1991 (ACT) and the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth). This Policy is consistent with the legislation and the Australian Football League’s Rule 30. This Policy is not in substitution of the legislation.
1.3 The Club will ensure that this Policy is communicated to spectators and participants of the Club. It will also ensure that participants of the Club receive anti-racial and religious vilification and racial discrimination training on an annual basis.
1.4 Nothing in this Policy prevents a person lodging a complaint in relation to racial and religious vilification and/or racial discrimination under the legislation.
Section 2 Definitions
In this Policy-
“complaints process” means the procedure outlined in sections 6, 7 and 8 of this Policy.
“Club” means the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club.
“engage in conduct” includes use of the internet or e-mail to publish or transmit statements or other material.
“League” means the South Sydney Junior Football League.
“detriment” includes humiliation and denigration.
“discrimination” means for the purpose of this Policy, conduct based on a person’s race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin. Discrimination may be direct or indirect. Direct discrimination means treating or proposing to treat another person less favourably on the basis of a person’s race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin. Indirect discrimination means imposing or intending to impose a requirement that a person of a particular race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin cannot comply with, but which a higher proportion of people without that attribute (or with a different attribute) can, when it is not reasonable in the circumstances to do so.
“participant” includes a player, director, officer, employee, volunteer to and agent of a Football Club that participates in the League.
“spectator” is a person that attends a football game or event conducted by a Club or the League.
Section 3 Prohibited Conduct
3.1 Racial and Religious Vilification
No person in his/her capacity as a spectator or participant in the League in the course of carrying out his/her duties or functions as or incidental to being a participant in the League shall engage in conduct that offends, humiliates, intimidates, contempt’s, ridicules, incites, (consider adding a comment specifying what needs to be incited?) threatens, disparages, vilifies or insults another person on the basis of that person’s race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin.
3.2 Serious Racial and Religious Vilification
No person in his/her capacity as a spectator or participant in the Club in the course of carrying out his/her duties of functions as or incidental to being a participant in the Club shall intentionally engage in conduct that he/she knows is likely to incite hatred against another person, or threaten physical harm or incite hatred in others to cause physical harm to a person or to a person’s property because of that person’s race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin.
3.3 Racial and Religious Discrimination
No person in his/her capacity as a spectator or participant in the Club in the course of carrying out his/her duties or functions as or incidental to being a participant in the Club shall engage in conduct that discriminates, directly or indirectly against another person on the basis of that person’s race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin.
3.4 Victimisation
3.4.1 No person in his/her capacity as a spectator or participant in the Club in the course of carrying out his/her duties or functions as or incidental to being a participant in the Club shall victimise another person.
3.4.2 A person will victimise another person (the victim) if:
(a) the person subjects or threatens to subject the victim to any detriment because the victim (or a person associated with the victim) intends to or has lodged a complaint in contravention of this Policy; or
(b) the person assists, requests, induces, encourages or authorises another person to subject the victim to any detriment because the victim (or a person associated with the victim) intends to or has lodged a complaint in contravention of this Policy.
Section 4 Authorised Persons
4.1 The Club will appoint a Complaints Officer (the Club’s Complaints Officer) to ensure that any breach of this Policy is responded to in an equitable and prompt manner.
4.2 The President of the Club (the President) is the senior decision-maker in the Club’s Complaints Process. Therefore, should the President be absent for a significant period, he/she must nominate a person to act on his/her behalf should the process need to be enacted.
Section 5 Confidentiality and Records
5.1 Confidentiality must be maintained throughout the complaints process. All parties to a complaint, the President (or Delegate), the Club’s Complaints Officer, any witnesses and the Conciliator must all agree, in writing, to the maintenance of confidentiality. No person involved in the complaints process shall publicly comment on any aspect of the complaints process without the prior written agreement of all parties.
5.2 The Club shall ensure that any documents relating to a complaint shall remain confidential and be retained for 7 years from the date that the complaint is made.
Section 6 Inter club Breach of the Policy
In the event that it is alleged that a spectator or participant from another Club has contravened this Policy:
6.1 an Umpire, spectator or participant of the Club may by 5.00pm on the first working day following the day on which the contravention is alleged to have occurred, lodge a complaint in writing with the Complaint’s Officer of the Club;
6.2 the Complaint’s Officer of the Club where the complaint was made shall, by 5.00pm on the next working day following the day that the complaint was lodged with the Club, lodge the complaint with the League’s Complaints Officer;
6.3 the Club’s Complaints Officer will take no further action once the complaint has been lodged with the League unless otherwise instructed by the League’s Complaints Officer.
Section 7 Intra Club Breach of the Policy
In the event that it is alleged that a participant of the Club has contravened this Policy an Umpire, spectator or participant may, by 5.00pm on the first working day following the day on which the contravention is alleged to have occurred, lodge a complaint in writing with the Club’s Complaints Officer.
Section 8 Management of Intra Club Complaints
The Club’s Complaints Officer shall:
8.1 make every effort to ensure that:
8.1.1 confidentiality is maintained at all times during the complaints process and that the outcome of the complaints process remains confidential;
8.1.2 any breach of confidentiality is referred to the South Sydney Junior League’s Tribunal no later than 5pm on the next working day following the day that the breach was
discovered;
8.2 inform the person alleged to have contravened the Policy (the respondent) of the complaint and provide the respondent with an opportunity to respond to it;
8.3 inform only the President of the Club or Nominee, that a Complaint has been received by the Complaints Officer;
8.4 obtain written statements from any witnesses identified by both parties to the complaint;
8.5 where available, obtain any other evidence;
8.6 arrange for the complaint to be conciliated, by an independent conciliator agreed upon by both parties;
8.7 take all steps necessary for the complaint to be conciliated within 5 working days from the day on which the incident is alleged to have occurred;
8.8 refer the complaint to the League’s Tribunal:
8.8.1 when the complainant informs the Complaints Officer that the matter has not been resolved through conciliation. The Complaints Officer will if requested by the complainant, take all steps necessary for the complaint to be referred to League’s Tribunal within 5 working days from when the conciliation failed;
8.8.2 directly when a respondent has previously taken part in conciliation as a respondent of a complaint;
8.8.3 when both the Club’s Complaints Officer and President have determined that the complaint was lacking in substance and was made vexatiously;
8.8.4 when both the Club’s Complaints Officer and President determine that under Anti Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW) or the Discrimination Act 1991 (ACT) the complaint could be considered as “serious”, he/she will take all steps necessary for the complaint to be referred to the League’s Tribunal within 5 working days from the day on which the
incident is alleged to have occurred;
8.9 ensure that any time limit referred to in this Policy may be extended by the Club if in the opinion of the President of the Club it is just and equitable to do so;
8.10 ensure that where a matter is resolved by conciliation the only public statement that shall be made shall be agreed to by both parties to the complaint and the Club’s President and that the terms of any settlement are finalised to the satisfaction of the complainant and respondent and signed by the parties and the conciliator.
Section 9 Club’s Liability
The Club may be vicariously liable for conduct engaged in by a participant which if found to have contravened this Policy, if the Club is unable to establish that it took reasonable precautions to prevent the participant from engaging in that conduct.
Section 10 Monitoring and Review of the Policy
The Policy will be monitored on an ongoing basis by the Club’s Executive Committee.
Section 11 Policy Commencement
This Policy was passed by Club’s Executive Committee on 12 September 2011 and will take effect immediately.
SMOKE FREE POLICY
Rationale
The Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club recognises that exposure of non-smokers to environmental tobacco smoke (passive smoking) is hazardous to health and that non-smokers should be protected. Passive smoking can lead to serious illnesses in adults such as bronchitis, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Children can also develop chest illnesses and asthma from exposure to tobacco smoke. Accordingly, the following policy has been developed by Ramsgate RSL RAMS Football Club to protect the health of all concerned.
The move to go SmokeFree also complements the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club’s desire to create a healthy family and community friendly environment. The Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club believes that such an environment and image will be advantageous in attracting new members as well as positively promoting the club in the community.
Legislation and the legal duty of care also provide clear reasons to have a SmokeFree club. Under common law the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club has a legal duty of care to ensure that employees, volunteers, members, players and officials are not exposed to potentially harmful situations. The Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 (NSW) and the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1989 (ACT) stipulates that employees and working volunteers must have a safe environment to work in.
Who is affected by the Policy?
This policy applies to all members, administrators, officials, coaches, players, visitors and volunteers of the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club.
Timing
This policy is effective from January 2011.
Designated SmokeFree Areas
The Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club requires the following areas to be SmokeFree:
➤ club and social rooms
➤ administration and office areas
➤ changing rooms
➤ toilet blocks
➤ indoor spectator viewing areas
➤ playing areas
➤ eating areas
➤ grandstands and spectator viewing areas
➤ near open windows (ten metre radius around open windows)
➤ near entries and exits of buildings, facilities, and the ground (ten metre radius).
Behavioural Expectations
The Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club recognises that role modelling can have a significant impact upon the junior members of the club. Hence, the following individuals and groups are to refrain from smoking while they are acting in an official capacity for the club or while in club uniform:
➤ coaches (when coaching, representing the club or while in club uniform)
➤ trainers (when training players or while in club uniform)
➤ officials (when officiating for the club or while in club uniform)
➤ volunteers (when working for the club or while in club uniform)
➤ players (when representing the club or while in club uniform).
Coaches and trainers will also speak to junior players about the effects of smoking on performance and health.
Non-Compliance Strategy
The following five-step non-compliance strategy will be followed if anyone breaches the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club’s SmokeFree policy.
1. Assume that the person is unaware of the SmokeFree policy.
2. A staff member or club representative will approach the person breaching the policy and politely ask them to refrain from smoking and remind them about the SmokeFree policy.
3. If the offence continues, then the most senior staff member or most senior club representative will verbally warn them again and hand over a formally written letter. The offending patron must also be made aware that if they don’t stop smoking then they will be required to leave the club’s facility. The letter will outline the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club’s policy on smoking and state that if the patron continues to breach the policy then he/she will be asked to leave. The club’s management committee will sign the letter. This letter will be pre-written and kept both behind the bar and in the club secretary’s office so that copies are readily available.
4. If the offence does continue, then the patron will be escorted out of the facility by staff and/or a senior club representative.
5. Under no circumstances should the Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club’s SmokeFree policy be breached.
Sale of Tobacco Products
The Ramsgate RSL Rams Football Club will refrain from selling tobacco products.
Policy Review
This policy will be reviewed six months after its introduction and then on an annual basis thereafter. This will ensure that the policy remains current and practical.