Diversity and Inclusion Statement

VERTX DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION STATEMENT

1What this is, and what it is not#

1.1Most statements of this kind are employer policies. They describe recruitment into the company, promotion within it, training, grievance and disciplinary procedures. VERTX employs almost nobody, so publishing one of those would describe a company we are not.

1.2What we do instead is assess engineers and place them with clients. That is where our decisions change what happens to somebody, so that is what this statement is about.

1.3It applies to how we assess applicants, how we set their level, how we match them to work, and how we behave towards them and towards our clients throughout.

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2The commitment#

2.1VERTX does not discriminate, and does not tolerate discrimination by anyone using the platform, on the basis of a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010: age; disability; gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership; pregnancy and maternity; race, including colour, nationality, ethnic and national origin; religion or belief; sex; and sexual orientation.

2.2That commitment applies to VERTX's own decisions and to our clients' conduct on the platform. Our Terms of Service prohibit expressing an unlawful preference, or unlawfully discriminating against anyone, in a role description, a proposal or a decision. A client who does so can be removed.

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3What we actually do, and why each of these is a fairness control#

3.1Level is assessed, never declared. We do not ask an applicant what level they are. We work it out from what they build and explain. Self-declared seniority rewards confidence and self-promotion, which are unevenly distributed by culture, gender and background and have little to do with engineering ability. Taking the question away removes the advantage.

3.2Everyone applying for the same role sits the same assessment. The same interview with the same written and spoken English check, the same practical coding assessment in the same environment where the role has one, and the same live technical interview, marked against the same rubric. Nobody is fast-tracked because of who referred them.

3.3We do not require a degree, a named university, or a particular employer. We read the work. A strong submission from somebody self-taught is a strong submission.

3.4Rates are never negotiated with a client. Each engineer names their own rate and agrees it with VERTX, against the level we award. The client sees one all-in day rate, and an engineer is never asked to defend their rate to a client. Negotiating pay face to face with the person doing the hiring is one of the best documented sources of unequal pay, because it rewards willingness to push rather than the work. Keeping that negotiation out of the relationship is how we keep that gap out.

3.5Nationality never rules a match out. We screen against sanctions and watchlists, which is a check against named individuals and entities. It is never a check on nationality, ethnicity or national origin, and it is never used as a proxy for one.

3.6We do not choose engineers by country. What decides whether we can place somebody is practical and commercial: whether we can put a proper contract in place where they live, whether we can pay them into an account in their own name, and whether we are currently placing at their level. Those are facts about contracts and payment rails, not about the person, and they change as we grow.

3.7Work is remote, with no relocation. Nobody needs a visa, a move, or the means to fund one. For many engineers that single fact is the difference between the work being available and being theoretical.

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4Adjustments#

4.1Our assessments are timed and conducted online. If a disability or a health condition means the standard format would not give a fair reading of your ability, tell us before you sit it and we will make a reasonable adjustment. That may mean extra time, a different format, a rescheduled session or a break structure.

4.2You do not need to give a diagnosis or medical evidence to ask. We will ask only what we need in order to make the adjustment work.

4.3Asking for an adjustment is not recorded as part of your assessment result and is never shared with a client.

4.4Write to talent@vertxtalent.io, or use the support option inside the assessment itself.

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5Where we are honest about the limits#

5.1We publish no diversity statistics. We have not placed enough engineers for a percentage to mean anything, and a number drawn from a handful of people would be decoration rather than evidence.

5.2We do not run mentoring, outreach or returner programmes. We are too small for that to be more than a claim, and we would rather do the assessment fairly than announce an initiative we cannot staff.

5.3Where we decline to place somebody, it is because of the assessment, the level we are currently placing at, or whether we can contract and pay in their country. It is never because of who they are. If you believe a decision of ours was discriminatory, section 6 is how to say so.

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6Raising a concern#

6.1If you believe you have been treated unfairly by VERTX, by a VERTX reviewer, or by a client on a VERTX engagement, write to talent@vertxtalent.io (or, if you are a client, hello@vertxtalent.io). Say what happened and when.

6.2A concern is looked at by a person, not a form. We will tell you what we find and what, if anything, we are changing.

6.3Nobody is treated less favourably for raising a concern in good faith, and raising one does not affect an application in progress.

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7Review#

7.1This statement is reviewed annually, and whenever we change how the assessment works or how levels are set. It is published by VERTX Talent Ltd, company number 16902446.

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VERTX Talent Ltd · Diversity and Inclusion Statement version 1.2, effective 6 October 2026, England and Wales.