SIFCO
Industries, Inc.
Code of Ethics
Introduction
This Code of Ethics (“Code”)
governs the actions and working relationships of SIFCO employees, officers and
directors with fellow employees, current and potential customers, suppliers, competitors,
government and regulatory agencies, and all other business associates. It applies to all SIFCO salaried employees
in all divisions, without exception.
It is SIFCO’s policy to conduct
all business according to the highest ethical standards of conduct. Each employee is responsible for
maintaining these high standards by, among other things, doing his or her job
without an actual or apparent conflict of interest, maintaining the
confidentiality of Company information, complying with all applicable laws and
regulations, protecting Company property, and treating others fairly and
honestly. These responsibilities are
discussed in more detail in the Code itself.
As a condition of employment with
SIFCO, every employee must strictly obey this Code of Ethics and any underlying
policies and procedures. Any employee
who knows or suspects a violation of the Code must promptly report it (see
“Reporting of Violations”). Further, no
supervisory employee shall knowingly fail to prevent an employee from taking
action that is in violation of this Code.
When in doubt, employees have the responsibility to seek clarification
from their immediate supervisor, the Human Resources Department, or a Corporate
Officer. Violations of the Code of
Ethics are subject to corrective action, up to and including termination.
I. Conflicts of Interest
A conflict of interest occurs
when your private interest interferes with the interests of SIFCO. It is not
possible to specify every action that may present a conflict of interest;
however this policy will outline some situations that frequently present
problems. For purposes of this policy, a “supplier” includes those providing
not only goods, but also services, such as consultants, transportation
companies, financial institutions, equipment lessors and technology
licensers. A “customer” includes not
only those who purchase SIFCO’s regular products or services, or license its
technology, but also those who can exercise major influence on SIFCO’s
customers.
Outside Employment or Activity
Full-time
employees are hired and continue in SIFCO Industries’ employ with the
understanding that SIFCO is their primary employer. All employees are prohibited from other employment or commercial
involvement that is or may potentially be in conflict with the business
interests of SIFCO.
·
No employee shall serve
as a consultant or employee for a supplier, competitor or customer without
first receiving written permission from SIFCO.
·
An employee who is
invited to serve as an officer, director, consultant or advisor for any outside
business organization shall obtain permission from SIFCO before accepting such
position.
·
No employee shall permit
other employment or outside business activity to interfere with or compete with
the performance of his or her duties for SIFCO, including the ability to
perform required overtime assignments.
·
SIFCO encourages civic,
charitable, educational and political activities as long as they do not
interfere with the performance of your duties at SIFCO.
Improper Payments or
Inducements For purposes of this policy, an “employee” includes you and any
member of your household and/or immediate family.
Gifts/Other
Personal Benefits
No employee shall seek or accept any commission, fee,
gratuity or other personal cash benefit from any person or company in
connection with the furnishing of goods or services to SIFCO, nor shall the
employee accept any non-cash benefit that may affect, or appear to influence,
his or her business judgment. An
employee may accept common courtesies, sales promotional items and
business-related meals, entertainment, gifts or favors when the value involved
is not significant and clearly will not place the employee under any obligation
to the donor.
Business Entertainment
All dealings with actual or potential suppliers and
customers shall be conducted in a manner that reflects both SIFCO’s best
interests and its high ethical standards.
An employee may entertain potential or actual customers or suppliers in
a manner appropriate to the business relationship and associated with business
discussions, provided the expenses are reasonable and authorized, no laws or
generally accepted ethical standards are violated, and public disclosure of the
facts of the entertainment will not embarrass SIFCO.
Bribes,
Kickbacks and Other Questionable Payments
No employee shall accept or enter into any payment
arrangement when the employee knows or should suspect (from the surrounding
circumstances) that the intent or probable result of the arrangement is to improperly
influence the employee or any other individual to make corporate decisions or
take action that would benefit the person offering such payment or
arrangement. Examples of improper
payment arrangements include, but are not limited to, receipt or provision of
cash payments or anything of value, consulting or service agreements, bribes,
and kickbacks.
Similarly, no employee shall make or offer, or arrange
to make or offer, an improper payment arrangement that is intended to or will
probably result in an individual, company or organization being improperly
influenced to make decisions or take action that would benefit the individual,
company or organization and that are designed to secure favored treatment for
SIFCO in connection with business dealings with any actual or prospective
customer, supplier or other organization.
Personal Ownership Interests
No
employee shall have any ownership interest in any supplier, competitor or
customer, except an ownership interest in a publicly-traded company where the
employee has no influence in or on the management of that company.
Pursuing Corporate
Opportunities/Interests
No employee shall knowingly buy
for his or her own account or for any member of his or her family any security
or property interest that SIFCO may be considering buying until such time as
SIFCO has publicly announced its decision to buy.
Competition
No employee shall compete, or
prepare to compete or aid others in competing with SIFCO, directly or
indirectly, in the purchase, sale or lease of property or products or services
either manufactured or distributed by SIFCO.
Related-Party Transactions
No employee shall act on behalf
of SIFCO in any transaction with a supplier, competitor or customer in which a
relative by blood or marriage or a member of the employee’s household is a
principal, officer or representative, unless the transaction is approved by the
employee’s supervisor and the next higher level of management.
II. Confidentiality
Confidential information is
defined as any and all written or oral information about the Company’s
operations and business activities that has not been made public and is not
common knowledge among competitors, customers, suppliers and others, and/or
that might be useful to or desired by others seeking information to buy or sell
the Company stock, or to compete against the Company. By way of example, confidential information includes, but is not
limited to:
An employee shall not:
·
disclose any confidential information, purposefully or
inadvertently (e.g., through casual conversation) to any unauthorized person
inside or outside the Company;
·
use any confidential information of the Company for his
own interest or against the interest of the Company;
·
remove from Company facilities, except as absolutely
required in his duties to the Company, any drawings, blueprints, reports,
manuals, customer lists, computer programs, trade secrets or other confidential
materials relating to or useful in the business or affairs of the Company.
III. Compliance with Laws,
Rules and Regulations
It is SIFCO’s policy to comply with
both the letter and the spirit of all laws, both foreign and domestic. Illegal conduct can never be in the
Company’s best interests. No employee
will enter into any transaction on the Company’s behalf that the employee knows
or should know would violate any law or regulation, nor will you assist any
third party in violating any law or regulation, whether or not such assistance
in itself is a violation. The laws and
regulations with which each department and location must comply will vary. You are responsible for knowing the specific
laws and regulations that affect your job and location. You must consult your supervisor if you have
any questions about any such laws and regulations and their application to your
job. The following is a non-exclusive
list of laws to which all SIFCO employees must adhere:
Accurate Books and Records
All funds, other assets and
transactions of the Company must be properly documented, fully accounted for
and promptly and accurately recorded in the Company’s books and records in
conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States
of America (GAAP), and the Company will adhere to the intent of the accounting
and disclosure requirements established by the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission. No employees may engage in
the making of false or fictitious entries in Company books or records
(including employee timesheets) with respect to Company transactions or the
disposition of Company assets.
Insider Trading and Securities
Law Compliance
An employee may not, directly or
indirectly, disclose material non-public Company information to a third
party. Further, an employee may not
purchase or sell (or advise someone else to purchase or sell) the Company’s stock
based on such information until the third business day after the information
has been publicly disseminated.
“Material” information is information which has the potential to affect
the market price of Company stock, and/or which a reasonable investor would
consider important in determining whether to buy or sell the Company’s
stock. Material information may
include, but is not limited to, annual and quarterly earnings results,
projections of future earnings or losses, changes in the Company’s dividend
policy, changes in management and significant acquisitions or
dispositions. Either positive or
negative information may be considered material. When in doubt, employees should contact SIFCO’s Chief Financial
Officer and/or Corporate Secretary for guidance.
Political Contributions
Employees shall not use Company
funds for contributions of any kind to any political party or committee in the
United States or any foreign country, or to any candidate for or holder of any
office of any government, national, state or local.
Workplace Health and Safety
Laws
The Company will conduct its
operations in compliance with all applicable environmental and health and
safety laws and regulations, in keeping with good corporate citizenship and
with a positive commitment to the protection of the natural and workplace
environments. Workplace health and
safety laws will vary among departments and locations. You are responsible for knowing the specific
laws and regulations that affect your job and location.
IV. Protection and Proper Use
of Company Property
All employees must ensure the
efficient and proper use of Company property and assets. Any actions that permit or result in Company
property being damaged, wasted or lost are strictly prohibited. Company property must not be used for
improper personal benefit. It may not
be sold, loaned, given away or otherwise disposed of, regardless of value,
except with proper authorization.
V. Fair Dealings
Each employee, officer and
director should undertake to deal fairly with SIFCO’s employees, customers,
suppliers, and competitors. No one
should take advantage of another through manipulation, concealment, abuse of
privileged information, misrepresentation of material facts, or any other
unfair-dealing practices.
VI. Reporting of Violations of
the Code of Ethics
Every employee has the
responsibility to report any known or reasonably suspected violations of the
law or this Code. Further, if an
employee is concerned that circumstances could lead to a violation of this
code, they must report their concerns.
This allows the Company to complete an investigation, take remedial
action if necessary, and implement controls to prevent possible future
violations.
To report possible violations of
or concerns about the Code, there are three options available:
1.
You may report a potential violation to your immediate
supervisor, who will be responsible for either addressing the situation or
escalating it to the appropriate management individual in the Company.
2.
If the potential violation involves your immediate supervisor,
or if circumstances are such that it would be inappropriate to notify your
immediate supervisor, you may report a potential violation to a higher level of
management, up to and including any Corporate Officer, or to the Human
Resources Department.
3.
You may anonymously report a potential violation by
using a confidential hotline administered by a third party. The number to call is 1-866-377-2372. This hot line is available 24 hours a day,
7 days a week. Any calls related to
accounting, internal controls and/or auditing matters will be directed to the
Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors.
All reports of possible
violations will be investigated and resolved.
The Company strictly prohibits any sort of intimidation of or retaliation
against an employee for making a report based on a good faith belief that a
violation did or could potentially occur, and any such intimidating or
retaliatory behavior will be subject to corrective action up to and including
termination. Similarly, an employee who
files a false report with malicious intent and without a good faith belief that
a violation did or could potentially occur will be subject to disciplinary
action up to and including termination.
VII. Administration and Waiver
of Code of Ethics
The Code of Ethics will be
administered and monitored by the SIFCO Corporate Human Resources
function. Any questions and further
information on this Code should be directed to this department.
All managers are responsible for understanding
this Code of Ethics and for reviewing it with their subordinates each time a
new edition of the Code is published.
They are also responsible for answering any questions or investigating
any concerns that arise from their subordinates. If the question or concern cannot be adequately addressed by the
manager, the manager is responsible for escalating the concern to the
appropriate next-level manager, or directly to the Human Resources
Department.
All employees, officers and
directors are responsible for following this Code of Ethics at all times. Generally, there should be no waivers to
this Code. However, in rare
circumstances conflicts may arise that necessitate waivers. Waivers for employees other than directors
and Senior Financial Officers will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the
Corporate Human Resources Department, with the advice of external legal counsel
as necessary. Waivers for directors
and Senior Financial Officers may only be approved by the Audit Committee of
the Board of Directors and must be appropriately disclosed to the public. Senior Financial Officers are those who
hold the positions of Chairman, CEO, President, COO, CFO, Treasurer, Corporate
Controller, Business Unit General Manager, and Business Unit Controller.
The Human Resources Department
will be responsible for determining appropriate disciplinary action, up to and
including termination, which may arise from the administration of the Code of
Ethics. The appropriate discipline will
be determined based on the severity of the action taken and the actual or
potential impact to the Company.