Greeting Pen Company
4084 Peavine Road Crossville, TN 38571
bill@greetingpen.com (615) 790-5055
The Mission of the Greeting Pen Company® is to communicate positive and inspirational messages on proprietary products (patented products) that fill a unique niche in the Greeting Card, Ink Pen, Stationery, and Novelty categories. Our patented Greeting Pen® and other stationery products are created to communicate the following: Inspiration, Hope, Greetings, Love, Faith, School Pride (Braggin’ Rights®), Courage, Holiday Sentiments, Appreciation, Breast Cancer Awareness, Patriotism, Military Service, Gratitude, Friendship, Recovery Slogans, Personalized Messages…and more.
Along with communicating inspiring messages, all employees strive to operate the business with time tested principles of integrity, honor, and discipline. We understand that if we don’t take exceptional care of each and every customer, it won’t be long before we lose the privilege to do so.
The Greeting Pen Company prides itself on its record of establishing and promoting the highest standards and practices consistent with maintaining an ethical workplace that is transparent to all “stakeholders.” We define a stakeholder as our customers, vendors, owners, the general public, governmental authorities, and others who have relationships or any involvement with the company.
Corporate Responsibility Policy
Greeting Pens LLC, (dba “The Greeting Pen Company”) is committed to conducting business in a manner consistent with the following Code of Conduct.
The Greeting Pen Company follows this Code of Conduct in all its business relations and works to ensure, through frequent visits, that its subcontractors also operate workplaces that adhere to the following minimum standards and practices:
Social Responsibility: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors must strive to manage the operations in a Socially Responsible manner: providing a good living wage and work environment for team members, managing the operations to protect the environment, striving to improve the lives of our team members and the communities around us.
Legal Compliance: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors must comply, at a minimum, with all applicable legal requirements of the country in which products are manufactured. Where this Code and the applicable laws of the country of manufacture conflict or differ, the higher standard shall prevail. Such compliance shall include compliance with all applicable environmental laws.
Employment Standards: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors must protect workers to be sure that they are present to work voluntarily, are not at undue risk of physical harm, are fairly compensated, and are not exploited in any way. In addition, the following guidelines must be followed:
- Health and Safety: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors work to provide workers with a safe and healthy work environment and to prevent accidents and injury occurring in the course of work. Workers will not be exposed to hazards that may endanger their safety, including their reproductive health. They must, at a minimum, comply with local and national health and safety laws. If residential facilities are provided to workers, they must be safe and healthy facilities.
- Nondiscrimination: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors must employ individuals solely on the basis of their ability to perform the job. No person shall be subject to any discrimination in employment including hiring, salary, benefits, advancement, discipline, termination or retirement on the basis of gender, race, religion, color, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, nationality, reproductive or familial situation, height, weight, political opinion, Vietnam-era status or social /ethnic origin.
- Harassment or Abuse: Every employee shall be treated with dignity and respect. No employee shall be subjected to any physical, sexual, psychological or verbal harassment or abuse. Use of corporal punishment will not be tolerated.
- Responsible Recruiting: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors must recruit responsibly. This includes ensuring that no workers pay for their job. Workers must retain control of their travel documents and have full freedom of movement. All workers are informed of the basic terms of their employment before leaving home.
- Forced Labor: There shall not be any use of forced labor, whether in the form of prison labor, indentured labor, bonded labor or otherwise.
- Child Labor: No person shall be employed at an age younger than 16 (or appropriate age when necessary to be consistent with International Labor Organization practices for developing countries the law of the country of manufacture allows such exception.) Where the age for completing compulsory education is higher than the standard for the minimum age of employment stated above, the higher age for completing compulsory education shall apply to this section. Subcontractors agree to work with governmental, human rights, and non-governmental organizations appropriate to minimize the negative impact on any child released from employment as a result of the enforcement of this policy.
- Women’s Rights: Greeting Pen and all vendors shall provide appropriate services and accommodations to women workers in connection with pregnancy. In addition, the pregnancy of an employee shall not be used as a basis for disciplinary treatment or termination of employment. The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors shall use their best efforts to reinstate workers who have taken maternity leave to the same or similar position at the same rate of pay and benefits. No employee or prospective employee shall be subjected to involuntary use of contraceptives or pregnancy testing.
- Wages and Benefits: Licensees and their contractors must provide wages and benefits which comply with all applicable laws and regulations and which match or exceed the local prevailing wages and benefits in the relevant industry or which constitute a “living wage,” whichever provides greater wages and benefits.
- Working Hours: Except in extraordinary circumstances, employees shall not be required to work more than the lesser of 48 hours per week and 12 hours overtime per week or the limits of regular and overtime hours allowed by the law of the country of manufacture; and workers shall be entitled to at least one day off in every 7-day period. Extraordinary circumstances warranting mandatory overtime must be documented in a written policy and explained to employees before they are hired.
- Overtime Compensation: In addition to their compensation for regular hours of work, employees shall be compensated for overtime hours at such a premium rate as is legally required in that country, but not less than at a rate equal to their regular compensation rate.
- Freedom of Association: The Greeting Pen Company and its subcontractors recognize and respect the right of employees to freedom of association and collective bargaining with bargaining representatives of their own choice. No employee shall be subject to harassment, intimidation or retaliation as a result of his or her efforts to freely associate or bargain collectively. Union organizers must be allowed access to employees if requested. Unions of the employees’ choice shall be recognized.
- Environmental Responsibility: Greeting Pen and all vendors must recognize the need to protect the natural environment. They must adopt recycling, energy conservation and best practices in disposal. Environmental friendly technology should be adopted when viable.
- Ethics: All parties involved with manufacture and sale of products for Greeting Pen must conduct business with integrity and respect for human rights. They must follow anti-bribery and corruption practices.
- Management Systems: Greeting Pen and all vendors must recognize the need to support Corporate Social Responsibility as a requirement for doing business. They must be committed to building systems and programs to fulfill our responsibility as a global citizen.
The Greeting Pen Company monitors compliance with this Code of Conduct through regular visits to workplaces of subcontractors and interviews with workers.
Greeting Pens LLC (“The Greeting Pen Company”) has been a member of the Fair Labor Association since established in 2017.
Addendum for Greeting Pen Location
- Treat Each Other with Respect: We are in this together. There will be times of frustration. Please treat everyone the way that you want to be treated. If someone gets upset give them space to work through their issues.
- 401K: Employees who work at least 1,000 hours are eligible to contribute to a 401K plan with both a traditional 401K and Roth 401K option. Greeting Pen will match the first 3% of employee wages that are contributed. Above 3% up to 5% are matched 50%. So, a 5% contribution from the employee is matched with a 4% contribution by Greeting Pen.
- Minimum Wage: Greeting Pen will adjust hourly pay rates to be competitive in the area. The lowest rate Greeting Pen will pay is $10.00 per hour.
- Wages and Hours: Pay dates are on the 15th and last day of each month. The normal hours are 9 AM – 3:30 PM Monday through Friday. Any adjustment to those hours are voluntary and will be discussed ahead of time.
- Overtime: Any hours above 40 hours a week will be paid 50% overtime premium for hourly employees. All overtime is voluntary. If there is a need for additional hours, we will discuss together to determine the best way to adjust schedules.
- Leave Policy: We will be as flexible as possible to accommodate leaves for any reason. Please discuss with us and we will find the best way to adjust hours and allow for the leave.
- Grievance Policy: If there is anything that we can do to make the workplace better, please let us know. If you do not feel comfortable talking with Bill, please talk with Angie. We will work together to find a solution that works for all of us.