Purpose: The policy ensures that all employees will enjoy a safe work environment free from unreasonable interference, intimidation, hostility, or offensive behavior on the part of managers, employees, contractors, clients, volunteers or visitors. It also acknowledges that harassment, sexual or otherwise, is against the law and will not be tolerated by this organization.

The purpose of this policy is to set forth key procedures for processing sexual harassment charges. This policy shall apply to full-time and part-time employees as well as volunteers. The agency is committed to maintaining a workplace free of sexual harassment and intimidation. The agency strongly supports the US Civil Rights Program as covered in Title VII, Sex Discrimination (as amended), and will not tolerate harassment of any nature by any of its employees, contractors or volunteers.

Policy:

1. The agency will maintain a workplace free of harassment of any kind and from any source, either management, coworkers, clients, volunteers, or visitors, while treating all complaints fairly and evenhandedly in order to prevent frivolous or malicious accusations and to provide a safe environment to encourage complaints when appropriate.

2. “Sexual harassment” means any physical or verbal conduct of a sexual nature as well as repeated and unwanted sexual requests and advances. The specific behaviors that are prohibited include but are not limited to:
1. Repeated, offensive sexual flirtation, advances and propositions
2. Continued or repeated abuse of a sexual nature
3. Graphic verbal commentaries about an individual’s body
4. Offensive comments, jokes, or suggestions about another employee’s gender, or physical attributes
5. Lewd or obscene jokes and gestures
6. Leering, pinching, patting, and swearing, particular when sexual terms are used
7. Sexually offensive and/or explicit posters, photos, etc., at the workplace
8. Unwelcomed questions or discussions about one’s personal sex life
9. Open display and / or discussions of sexual relations between supervisory and supervised staff especially when connected to any favoritism toward the supervised person connected to the discussion.
10. Social invitations accompanied by discussion of terms and conditions of employment or a performance evaluation or judgment in a case
11. Use of degrading, derogatory, or slang terms such as “honey,” sweetie,” “girl,” “doll,” or addressing employees of one gender differently than another.
12. Requests or instructions that clothing be worn for sexual effect

3. An employee who files a complaint and / or refuses sexual favors is free from reprisals such as escalation, threatened demotions and transfers, denial of promotions and benefits, dismissal and poor job references.

Responsibilities:

1. Employees / volunteers / contractors
1. Be sure beyond a reasonable doubt that the offensive conduct is discriminatory or harassing. Find witnesses or other substantiation.
2. Let the offending person(s) know the conduct is offensive. If it does not stop or if it recurs, file a complaint with the Executive Director or Chairman of the Board as EEO Officers.
2. Supervisors
1. Supervisors need to be alert to any sexual harassment and be responsible for maintaining a workplace free of harassment and to refrain from all forms of discrimination and harassment at all times.
2. Supervisors are responsible for informing employees of the provisions of the policy and referring victims to the Executive Director or Chairman of the Board as EEO Officers.
3. Supervisors are to maintain complete and thorough documentation of any alleged charges or complaints.
3. The EEO Officers
1. The EEO Officer will handle the complaint and provide the results of the investigation within seven working days.

Process:

1. Contact an EEO Officer
1. Any employee, contractor or volunteer who is sexually harassed may contact an EEO Officer directly without going through the supervisor.
2. Any employee, contractor or volunteer may make an informal or formal complaint to an EEO officer
3. Any employee, contractor or volunteer who has knowledge of sexual harassment can report it to an EEO Officer.
4. If a supervisor is informed of an incident, the supervisor should call the EEO Officer(s) immediately for technical assistance.
5. Any client or job applicant that is sexually harassed may call an EEO Officer.
6. Appropriate disciplinary action will be taken on a probable cause finding as well as on other recommendations deemed advisable.
7. Victims and witnesses are protected from reprisals and may remain anonymous during the investigation phase. Should a hearing become necessary, the victims and witnesses may have to testify.
2. Disciplinary action
1. Any client who has engaged in sexual harassment will be informed that the behavior is not acceptable at anytime at VORP. If the behavior continues, the EEO Officer will be contacted and will review the situation. If the EEO Officer based on a probable cause finding, deems action is necessary, the client will be asked to leave VORP and their case will be closed.
2. Any employee who has engaged in sexual harassment will be subject to disciplinary action

1. If verbal conduct of a sexual nature as described in the definitions of “sexual harassment” should occur, and disciplinary action is deemed necessary by the EEO Officer based on a probable cause finding, the following action will result:
1. The accused employee, volunteer or contractor will receive a written reprimand from her/his supervisor. The written reprimand will include the consequences of further sexual harassment complaints. Counseling may be recommended.
2. If the conduct continues after the written reprimand, and the EEO Officer, with Board approval, deems further action is necessary,
1. An employee will receive a three to five day suspension without pay.
2. A contractor or volunteer may be deleted from the eligible volunteer and contractor lists and all current contracts or work terminated.
3. If, after suspension, harassment continues, the employee will be terminated from the agency.
2. If physical conduct of a sexual nature as described in the definitions of “sexual harassment” should occur, and disciplinary action is deemed necessary by the EEO Officer with Board approval, based on a probable cause finding, the following action will result:
1. An employee will receive a five to ten day suspension without pay.
2. A contractor or volunteer may be deleted from the eligible volunteer and contractor lists and all current contracts or work terminated.
3. If the harassment continues after the suspension and the EEO Officer deems further action is necessary, that employee will be terminated from the agency.

Definitions: These are terms that may arise in connection with complaints of sexual or other forms of harassment:

1. Unreasonable conduct: Treating someone as if that person is inferior to oneself. This includes condescension (refusing to take one seriously), verbal abuse (making negative or derogatory comments), exclusion (overlooking or denying someone access to places, people or information, especially when opportunities for advancement are involved, and tokenism or “window-dressing” which consists of selecting one of a few members of a group for very visible positions.
2. Discrimination: Employment decisions implicitly or explicitly based on factors other than job-related considerations or treating one employee differently merely on the basis of a protected characteristic (i.e. that person’s sex).
3. Harassment: Repeated, unwanted and unwelcome verbalisms or behaviors of a sexist, racist, or ageist nature or with overtones related to a protected characteristic (e.g. sex, race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, or military status).
4. Hostile Environment: Conduct that has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with a person’s job performance or creates an intimidating or offensive work environment.
5. Quid-pro-quo sexual harassment:

1. Making submission to sexual demands an implicit or explicit term or condition of employment
2. Making decisions affecting someone’s employment or compensation on the basis of whether the person accepts or rejects sexual demands or invitations.
3. Making decisions affecting a client case on the basis of whether the person accepts or rejects sexual demands or invitations.