General Policies
PURPOSE
Modo Yoga International’s mission is to grow our community of studios, teachers and students with the aim of sharing yoga with as many people as possible and therefore creating more peace in the world. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the organization to ensure that all Modo Yoga studios and teacher trainings are free from harassment and abuse. Modo Yoga International will not tolerate any form of harassment that violates this Policy.
PROHIBITED CONDUCT
Modo Yoga International prohibits the conduct outlined below by all employees, sub-contracted staff and volunteers working at a Modo Yoga studio or at Modo Yoga International, as well as clients of Modo Yoga studios.
APPLICABILITY
This Policy applies to all Modo Yoga International and Modo Yoga studio workers in any context or environment where a worker presents themself (or is presented) as an employee, sub contracted staff and volunteers, including but not limited to: group and private yoga instruction in Modo Yoga studios, gymnasiums, fitness clubs, other schools and universities, medical facilities, group homes, prisons, public spaces, festivals, retreats; and all online spaces, including social media.
Seek Active Inclusion: Workers SHOULD seek to actively include, accommodate, and welcome persons who are typically excluded on the basis named above in ‘Avoid Discrimination’ as a committed practice towards creating equity.
Provide Reasonable Accommodations: Workers SHOULD understand and facilitate to the best of their ability reasonable accommodations for people with different physical abilities.
Workers should be committed to applying strong ethical principles in their professional and personal lives, and this should be understood as intrinsic to their practice and teaching of yoga.
Activities covered by this Policy shall be distinguished from the purely private conduct of workers, which is beyond the purview of this Policy.
DEFINITIONS
HARASSMENT
Harassment is unwelcome verbal or non-verbal conduct where: (i) the conduct denigrates or shows hostility or aversion towards the person and has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with their work, study, or other activity, (ii) enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of the continued relationship, and/or (iii) the conduct has the purpose or effect of creating an environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive.
Harassment includes epithets, slurs, name calling, negative stereotyping, insults, intimidation, ridicule, threatening, intimidating or hostile acts, denigrating jokes, and display of written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual or group based on their protected characteristic.
Harassment includes, but is not limited to: offensive verbal comments related to age, gender, gender identity, pronoun use, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, body type, personal appearance, physical or mental ability, socioeconomic status, marital status, political activities or affiliation, or any other basis proscribed by local, state, provincial, national, and federal laws and regulations; deliberate intimidation; stalking; following; harassing photography or recording; sustained and intentional disruption of class or other events; and inappropriate physical contact.
RETALIATION
Retaliation is any adverse action or threat taken or made against an individual, including through third parties and/or legal counsel, for making a report of prohibited conduct or participating in any investigation or proceeding related to this Policy. Retaliation includes threatening, intimidating, harassing, or any other conduct that would discourage a reasonable person from engaging in activity protected under this Policy. Retaliation also includes maliciously and/or intentionally interfering with, threatening, or harming the academic or professional career or reputation of another individual before, during, or after the Investigation, Decision, and resolution of a report of prohibited conduct under this Policy in response to and/or on account of the report of the prohibited conduct. This provision applies to reports made or information provided in good faith, even if the facts alleged in the report are determined not to be accurate.