ESG policy

This policy sets out how M.S. Management & Outstaffing Services (“MS”, “we”) manages its environmental, social and governance responsibilities.

MS is a boutique staffing and consultancy firm based in Brussels. We assign professionals to project and operational teams at international organisations in Belgium, Germany and France. We work on the basis of a hybrid model, called the Triangle of Care, whereby we stay involved and steer the whole assignment through regular contact with the assigned team member, the client’s management and MS, and by providing coaching and mediation when needed.

Our largest impact is on people: the candidates we assess, the team members we employ and assign, and the teams they join. Our environmental footprint is small and comes mainly from business travel, office energy and IT equipment. The commitments below are proportionate to that profile.

The policy applies to MS management and staff, team members on the MS payroll, and freelancers or subcontractors who work on our behalf. It draws on the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, and the EU General Data Protection Regulation. Where a client’s supplier code of conduct sets a stricter standard, we follow the client’s standard.

The Managing Director owns this policy. He approves it, reviews it every year, and answers ESG questions from clients, candidates, and team members.

Everyone in scope is expected to act in line with it. We brief new staff and team members on the policy when they start.

Our environmental impact is limited. We manage it through practical steps we can apply and check.

• Travel. We choose rail over air between Brussels and Cologne, and for other journeys where rail is practical. We hold interviews, check-ins and reviews online when meeting in person adds nothing, and we go on site when the work or the relationship needs it.
• Digital by default. CVs, contracts, invoices and reports are shared and stored electronically. We print only when a document requires it.
• Equipment. We keep IT equipment in use for as long as it performs well, and we recycle end-of-life electronics through Belgium’s certified collection scheme (Recupel).
• Workspace. When we choose office space or energy contracts, we prefer energy-efficient premises and renewable electricity.
• Client sites. Our team members follow the client’s environmental rules when they work on client premises.
• Measurement. From January 2027, we record business travel by distance and mode. That gives us a baseline for setting reduction goals.

Fair and ethical recruitment

• We never charge candidates a fee for finding them work.
• We describe roles, working conditions and contract terms accurately.
• We assess candidates on skills, experience and mindset, and we apply the same criteria to everyone shortlisted for a role.
• We share a candidate’s CV with a client only after the candidate has agreed.
• We tell every candidate we’ve interviewed the outcome of their application.
• When a team member joins a client through our Triangle of Care model, we explain the path to internalisation, including the minimum 12-month period, before the assignment starts.

Human rights and labour standards

• We don’t use or tolerate forced, bonded or child labour, anywhere in our operations or through our subcontractors.
• We verify each team member’s right to work, including a Single Permit where one is required, before the assignment starts.
• We respect freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining.
• We pay at least the legal minimum and the rates set by applicable sector agreements, pay on time, and apply the employment law of the country where the work takes place to working time, leave and social security.

Equal treatment and inclusion

• We don’t discriminate on any ground protected by law, including nationality, national or ethnic origin, skin colour, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, health, religion or belief, political or trade union opinion, language and civil status.
• We work with professionals from many countries and backgrounds, and we judge fit on what each person brings to the role.
• We handle every report of harassment or discrimination promptly and confidentially.

Wellbeing, health and safety

• Before an assignment starts, we agree with the client who is responsible for workplace safety, equipment and site rules.
• Our check-ins with team members and their management cover workload, working relationships and wellbeing alongside performance, so we can act early when pressure builds.
• We offer mediation when friction arises, and coaching to help team members settle in and grow in their role.
• We apply the Belgian Law of 4 August 1996 on wellbeing at work, including the prevention of psychosocial risks, with the support of our external prevention service — Idewe.

Data protection and privacy

• We process personal data of candidates and team members under the GDPR, and only for recruitment and employment purposes.
• We limit access to personal data to the people who need it for their work.
• We keep CVs of candidates who weren’t assigned to a role for 36 months, unless the candidate asks us to delete them sooner. Send access and deletion requests to info@ms-management.be.

Community

• We share practical knowledge of the Belgian job market with jobseekers, including newcomers to Belgium, through sessions with partner organisations such as Enabel.

Legal compliance

• We comply with the laws of every country where we operate, including Belgian and German labour, tax and social security law.

Anti-bribery and corruption

• We don’t offer, give, request or accept bribes, kickbacks or other improper payments, directly or through anyone else.
• Gifts and hospitality must be modest, occasional and unconnected to any hiring or purchasing decision. We decline anything worth more than €100 and report it to the Managing Director.
• We respect our clients’ own rules on gifts and hospitality when they are stricter than ours.

Conflicts of interest

• We disclose any personal or financial relationship that could influence a recruitment or commercial decision, such as a family link between a candidate and someone at MS or at the client. The person concerned steps back from that decision.

Confidentiality

• We keep client information confidential during and after each assignment. Team members confirm their confidentiality obligations in writing before they start.

Fair competition and accurate billing

• We compete on the quality of our service and don’t agree prices, divide markets or exchange commercially sensitive information with competitors.
• We invoice only for time and services actually delivered, at the rates agreed with the client, and we keep accurate financial records.

Subcontractors and partners

• Freelancers, subcontractors and partners who work with us on client assignments must meet the standards in this policy. We make that a condition of working together.

Raising concerns

• Anyone, inside or outside MS Management Services, can report a suspected breach of this policy or of the law to the Managing Director at info@ms-management.be, or to tatiana@ms-management.be if the concern involves the Managing Director.
• We treat every report confidentially and protect anyone who reports in good faith from retaliation, in line with the Belgian Law of 28 November 2022 on the protection of whistleblowers.

• The Managing Director reviews this policy every year, and sooner when the law, our activities or client requirements change.
• We track a small set of indicators and share them with clients on request: concerns raised and resolved, care-loop check-ins held, and business travel by distance and mode (from January 2027).
• A breach of this policy can lead to disciplinary action or the end of the working relationship.