Our Social Principles for the Recruitment of Personnel from Third Countries

Fair Recruitment of Nursing Professionals

When it comes to implementing our projects, we place great emphasis on fairness, ethics, and personal responsibility. Our Social Principles are a promise to all candidates, employees, and care facilities.

Preamble

In the globalization of the recruitment process for skilled workers, the parties want to show a human face. The parties want to use a clear mission statement to prevent the irreversible process of globalization from triggering avoidable fears among people around the world.

In addition to compliance with the international human rights convention, the parties' mission statement is fundamentally based on the recognition of the WHO Code of Conduct for the international recruitment of healthcare professionals, which represents the supreme guideline for the parties' business practices.

It serves in particular to protect the individual's right to migrate, and is based on the understanding that the legitimate interests and responsibilities of international skilled workers, countries of origin, and employers in the destination country may come into conflict with one another.

The parties voluntarily commit to compliance with the ILO core labor standards, in particular the general principles and operational guidelines for fair recruitment of the ILO, as well as the IRIS standards of the International Organization for Migration. The parties further strive to ensure that the laws of all foreign countries involved are complied with in the recruitment and placement process, in which the parties operate, including the relevant labor and immigration laws.

CuraConnect addresses the following social principles – which CuraConnect itself lives by – to all its business partners, as it acts as an extension of the client and involves a variety of service providers (language schools, recruitment agencies, etc.) in the recruitment process. Business partners must observe and comply with these requirements insofar as they fall within their scope of application.

1. Human Rights Principles

1.1 Human Rights

The business partners support and advocate for compliance with internationally recognized human rights.

1.2 Non-Discrimination

In recruiting international skilled workers, business partners commit to ensuring equal opportunity and refraining from any discrimination, unless national law expressly provides for selection based on certain criteria. Our goal is to ensure our commitment to non-discriminatory practices in the workplace. All qualified applicants and employees have the same right to employment and advancement opportunities, regardless of race, color, sex, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or other categories covered by applicable law.

1.3 Equal Opportunity

Ensuring and safeguarding equal opportunity in hiring, selection, training, compensation, promotion, transfer, and job assignment is among the business partners' principles. Employment decisions are to be made on the basis of valid job requirements. These opportunities and other employment conditions apply to qualified applicants and employees regardless of race, color, sex, pregnancy, age, religion, national origin, genetic disposition, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, and/or other protected categories under applicable law.

1.4 Anti-Harassment

Internationally recruited skilled workers should find a work environment free from harassment (sexual harassment, bullying, etc.). Business partners are expected to contribute to keeping the work environment free from harassment. Retaliatory measures against persons who have raised concerns about harassment in good faith or participated or cooperated in an investigation are to be prevented.

1.5 Forced or Compulsory Labor

Business partners maintain a zero-tolerance policy against any form of human trafficking or related activities, including any form of unlawful employee harassment, retaliation, forced or compulsory labor, sex trafficking, or child labor. Business partners strive to ensure responsible hiring and retention practices in their operations.

1.6 Health and Safety

Business partners recognize a responsibility for the protection of their employees and our planet. They commit to creating a work environment that meets the highest safety and health standards.

1.7 Fair Wages/Compensation

Business partners establish internal policies to guarantee all employees fair compensation and provide them with comprehensive opportunities for their professional development.

2. Labor Law Principles

2.1 Remuneration/Compensation

The right to fair compensation is recognized for all employees of business partners (ILO Convention No. 100). Remuneration/compensation and other benefits (social benefits, vacation, etc.) comply with the principle of fairness and meet at least the respective national legal standards or the level of the national economic sectors/industries.

2.2 Working Hours

Business partners ensure compliance with the respective national regulations and agreements on working hours and regular paid leave. Working hours including overtime must not permanently exceed the existing legal and/or collective agreement standards in the respective countries.

2.3 Occupational Health and Safety

Occupational health and safety have the highest priority. Business partners ensure occupational safety and health protection in the workplace within the framework of national regulations and support continuous development to improve the working world.

2.4 Qualification

Business partners support and promote qualification measures for employees that are suitable for expanding and deepening the essential professional and technical knowledge required for work activities.

2.5 Legal Requirements of the Source Country

There may be legal requirements that the home country of international employees imposes on the international migration of workers. Business partners comply with these requirements and implement them in the best possible synchronization with the domestic legal framework.

2.6 Poaching of International Skilled Personnel

Recruiting skilled workers from third countries represents a cost-intensive, resource-draining undertaking for German employers. With their investment in international nursing professionals, these employers make a contribution to alleviating the shortage of skilled workers in the German healthcare system. Therefore, business partners refrain from the targeted, active poaching of international skilled workers who are new to Germany and have thus only had a short period of employment with another company.

3. Migration Law Principles

3.1 Residence Permit

Business partners support all measures arising from the requirements of the application for a residence permit for their internationally recruited employees. In particular, they provide the best possible support so that the conditions necessary for long-term residence can be met by the internationally recruited employees.

3.2 Recognition of Foreign Professional Training

Recognition of foreign professional training is of the greatest importance for skilled workers from third countries. Business partners create the appropriate framework conditions and enable measures so that the recognition of foreign professional training can be successfully completed within a reasonable timeframe and with the best possible results.

3.3 Integration

International labor migration involves various additional efforts and demands the highest level of commitment and flexibility from all parties involved. In particular, migrating skilled workers leave their homeland and families with few belongings and financial resources and enter a completely unfamiliar and in many ways different (culturally, socially, linguistically, meteorologically, etc.) work and living environment. Business partners ensure a welcoming culture that enables the best possible integration of international employees in both the work environment and the private sphere. To this end, business partners must develop and implement a comprehensive integration concept.