Corporate Social Responsibility Policy

The EMSTEEL Corporate Social Responsibility Policy establishes the principles guiding our approach to social responsibility, human rights, and employee and labour rights. It applies to all employees, contractors, suppliers, business partners, functions, and other stakeholders associated with EMSTEEL.

EMSTEEL complies with applicable UAE laws and regulations and seeks to align its practices with internationally recognised social responsibility and human rights principles. We conduct documented social and human rights risk assessments to identify, prevent, mitigate, and respond to potential impacts arising from our operations, products, services, and supply chains. EMSTEEL has zero tolerance for human rights and labour rights violations and treats any such violation as a legal and compliance breach.

Our commitments include:

Stakeholder and Community Engagement: Engage responsibly with affected stakeholders and communities, understand their needs and concerns, support local sourcing, employment, and expertise, and avoid or appropriately manage involuntary resettlement risks.

Health, Safety, and Well-being: Maintain high occupational health and safety standards in line with applicable UAE requirements and ISO 45001 to protect employees, contractors, and other workers.

Freedom of Association: Respect the right of employees and contractors to raise and express concerns, individually or collectively, without discrimination or retaliation.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Provide equal opportunities for all employees and foster a diverse, inclusive, and equitable work environment, including diversity at Board and leadership levels. EMSTEEL ensures that all employees, including expatriate workers, are treated with respect for their rights, dignity, health, and safety, and have the same access to grievance mechanisms as all other staff. Employment terms, including wages, benefits, and working conditions, are set in compliance with UAE labour law and are applied in a transparent and fair manner, ensuring protection from exploitation or abuse.

Discrimination and Harassment: Maintain a workplace free from discrimination, harassment, violence, intimidation, and retaliation throughout recruitment and employment.

Forced Labour, Child Labour, Slavery, and Human Trafficking: Prohibit all forms of forced or compulsory labour, child labour, modern slavery, and human trafficking across our operations and supply chains. Workers’ identity documents must not be retained, and recruitment fees must not be charged to workers.

Fair Wages and Working Hours: EMSTEEL provides fair and ethical employment practices, including competitive wages, reasonable working hours, appropriate leave and benefits. Overtime is voluntary, appropriate meal and rest breaks are provided, and fatigue risks are managed across shifts. Employees receive at least three working weeks of paid annual leave after one year of service. Wages are paid monthly without illegal deductions, and compensation is periodically benchmarked against market standards.

Responsible Sourcing: Work with suppliers whose practices align with recognised responsible sourcing standards, including BES 6001, CARES Sustainability Construction Scheme, ResponsibleSteel, and other relevant programmes. We seek to avoid conflict minerals linked to armed conflict or human rights abuses.

High-Risk Areas and Indigenous Peoples: Apply appropriate due diligence in conflict-affected and high-risk areas and respect the rights of workers, communities, and Indigenous peoples wherever we operate.

Privacy and Security: Protect personal and sensitive information through robust data protection and information security controls aligned with ISO 27001, while ensuring that security arrangements respect human rights.

Training and Development: Support continuous learning, career development, and workforce capability building. Employees receive relevant training on health and safety, human rights, sustainability, business ethics, employee rights, and grievance mechanisms, including periodic ethics and compliance refresher training.

Grievance Mechanisms and Violation Reporting System: Provide accessible, confidential, and effective grievance mechanisms for employees, workers, suppliers, customers, community members, and other stakeholders. EMSTEEL maintains a confidential and anonymous Violation Reporting System, including an independent 24/7 multilingual hotline accessible through the company website. All concerns are handled appropriately, whistleblower identities are protected, and retaliation is strictly prohibited.

This Policy will be reviewed and updated as required to reflect applicable legal and regulatory requirements, recognised business practices, EMSTEEL’s operational philosophy, and evolving business needs.