Statement on incident response

At Hireup, the safety of our users is our number one priority. We focus on building trust and safety systems that are effective at preventing incidents and injuries. Whilst we work hard to ensure that incidents are prevented, we also understand that sometimes things don't go to plan so we have built an incident response team and developed fair and effective procedures to respond and resolve incidents.  

Principles

• Hireup is committed to responding and resolving incidents in a timely manner
• Hireup will act fairly and equitably in investigating and resolving an incident
• Hireup will accurately document the response process that is undertaken
• Hireup will communicate with key stakeholders internally and externally throughout the process
• Hireup will consider the communication requirements of all stakeholders involved in an incident or emergency and tailor our communication accordingly. 

Reporting an incident

Incidents should be reported as soon as possible and at the very latest within 24 hours of the incident occurring.

Anyone can notify Hireup of an incident or issue by using the following reporting channels:

1. Using our online incident report form
2. Phone (02) 9113 5933 (9am-5pm Monday to Friday)
3. Email hello@hireup.com.au

If a report is received over the phone, Hireup may request the notifier to provide a written statement with facts and information regarding the incident or issue.

What happens after a report is made?

Each incident will be investigated in a timely and fair manner, using the following procedure:

• The incident will be assigned to a member of the Hireup incident response team  
• An assessment of the type and severity of the issue or incident will be made and significant incidents will be escalated to the Head of Service
• Each step of the process will be documented
• An investigation plan will be developed and include details of: 
• A timeline for the investigation
• A summary of key stakeholders
• A list of evidence required
• A communication plan, developed in consultation with the notifier and other key stakeholders
• Support options for affected parties, for example, access to counseling services.

Resolution

Each incident will be resolved to the satisfaction of all key stakeholders. Hireup will ensure that the resolution is fair and proportionate to the incident. The resolution may include:

• Mediation
• Suspension or termination of a user account*
• Account restriction
• Details of complaint reporting authorities that users can connect with.

*Hireup will ensure that continuity of service is considered prior to suspending or terminating the account of a person seeking support.

Remediation

Beyond the agreed resolution, Hireup will undertake further work as required to ensure that everyone involved is satisfied and supported.  This may be done by:

• Connecting users with new workers, new users seeking support or new service providers
• On-going checks-ins with impacted stakeholders
• Analysing our trust and safety systems and processes to identify areas for improvement.

Reportable Incidents/Issues

Hireup will meet all of the legislative and regulatory requirements and obligations for reporting notifiable incidents to the relevant authorities.