SEXUAL HARASSMENT
POLICY
MANUAL
FOR
ROCKHAM 5G
Title VII, Civil Rights
Act of 1964
Sexual Harassment Policy
Manual
Table of Contents
I.
Objective
II.
Background
and Types of Sexual Harassment
III.
Sexual
Harassment Definition
IV.
Additional
Definitions
V.
Prevention
VI.
Sexual
Harassment Complaint
VII. Complaint Procedures
VIII. Documentation
IX.
Resolution
X.
Return
to Work: Alleged Victim, Complainant and Others
XI.
Return
to Work: Alleged Harasser
XII. Conclusion
I.
Objective
A. The
objective of the Rockham 5G Sexual Harassment Policy Manual is to define sexual
harassment, prevent sexual harassment from occurring, train employees
concerning sexual harassment, provide investigative procedures to follow,
establish disciplinary guidelines and ensure sexual harassment victims return
to a safe and positive work environment after an investigation. A copy of this
policy is always available at
www.rockham.com/Statement_of_Sexual_Harassment_Policy.htm.
II.
Background
and Types of Sexual Harassment
A.
Sexual harassment is considered a form of
sexual discrimination by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Equal Employment Opportunities
Commission (EEOC) enforces this act and has mandated that all companies
(including Rockham
5G) have a legal responsibility to provide their employees with a
harassment-free workplace. Sexual
harassment and discrimination are illegal and endanger the environment of
tolerance, civility, and mutual respect that must prevail if Rockham 5G is to
fulfill its mission. Rockham 5G is
committed to providing and promoting an atmosphere in which employees can
realize their maximum potential in the workplace. Towards this end, all employees of the
company must understand that sexual harassment, sexual discrimination, and
sexual exploitation of professional relationships violate the companyÕs policy
and will not be tolerated. Rockham 5G
takes this responsibility very serious and has created this manual to help
ensure a workplace for our employees that is harassment-free. The
company will take every step to resolve grievances promptly. Any act by the
companyÕs employees of reprisal, interference, or any other form of
retaliation, whether direct or indirect, against an employee for raising
concerns covered by this policy is also a violation of this policy.
Accordingly, members of the company are prohibited from acts of reprisal
against individuals who bring complaints or are involved as witnesses in any
action connected with this policy.
B.
Applicability
This policy applies to all applicants for employment and employees.
C.
Sexual harassment victims can be female or male
and harassment can occur between individuals of the opposite sex or between
individuals of the same sex. While
sexual harassment most often takes place in situations where there is a difference
in authority or power, other forms of sexual harassment do occur. Rockham 5G recognizes the following types of
sexual harassment.
i.
Quid Pro Quo
Quid Pro Quo harassment
occurs when sexual advances are demanded of an employee in exchange for some
employment benefit such as pay increases, promotion, hiring, or continued
employment. This type of behavior
if proven true will be considered sexual harassment on the first occurrence by Rockham 5G.
ii.
Hostile Work Environment
An intimidating or hostile
work environment is considered sexual harassment when employees are subjected
to behavior of a sexual nature or that could be considered as such by a
reasonable person. While this
behavior will not always constitute sexual harassment on the first occurrence, Rockham 5G
will not tolerate such behavior.
III.
Sexual Harassment Definition
A.
For the purpose of this policy, sexual
harassment is defined as any threatening or unwelcome attention, either verbal
or physical behavior of a sexual nature, in the workplace that a reasonable
person would interpret as harassment of a sexual nature, when:
i.
Submission to such conduct is made or
threatened to be made explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of
employment
ii.
Submission to or rejection of such conduct is
used or threatened to be used as a basis for an employment decision.
iii.Such
conduct has the purpose or effect of interfering with an individual's work
performance, or of creating a hostile or intimidating work environment.
B.
Behavior that may be considered evidence of sexual harassment includes,
but is not limited to, the following:
i.
Staring or leering in a suggestive manner.
ii.
Making offensive remarks about someone's looks,
clothing and/or body.
iii.Touching,
pinching, patting and brushing against someone in a manner that creates an
uncomfortable feeling.
iv.
Telling sexual or offensive jokes or making
sexual gestures.
v.
Displaying sexually related material such as
posters or calendars.
vi.
Sending sexually related material via email,
letters or notes.
IV.
Additional
Definitions
A.
The following definitions will be used by Rockham 5G
and The
Investigator for the purpose of this manual and any actions brought
about from an alleged incident.
i.
Alleged Victim: A person who allegedly has been harassed
in violation of this policy
ii.
Complainant: The person who brings a complaint of
violation of this policy. This
person may be the alleged victim, a coworker, or other persons.
iii.Alleged
Harasser: The person accused of
violating this policy
iv.
Investigator: The person assigned the responsibilities
of conducting/leading an investigation of alleged sexual harassment.
v.
Specific and Credible Allegations: Allegations that provide factual details
such as, but not limited to:
á
Time
á
Place
á
Actions
á
Participants
á
Witnesses
Allegations do not have to
be based on first-hand observation of events to be Òspecific and credible,Ó but
direct observation usually provides better details than indirect knowledge.
V.
Prevention
A.
Prevention is the best tool to eliminate sexual
harassment in the workplace. Rockham 5G is
committed to providing a harassment-free workplace for all employees. Rockham 5G strictly forbids sexual
harassment under this policy. The
following guidelines are expected to be adhered to by all employees.
á
Avoid any type of sexual behavior in the workplace
á
Do not hang, post, or bring to work any pornographic material. This would include posters, pictures,
magazines, cartoons, letters, books or other such items.
á
Keep conversations clean. Avoid vulgar language, talk about sex,
explicit jokes, sexual innuendos, sexist remarks, commenting on co-workerÕs
appearances and cuss words in your conversations.
á
Keep your actions above reproach.
Web sites and emails you view should be clean. Offensive hand gestures should not be
made even if between friends. DonÕt
ÔlookÕ at a co-worker in an inappropriate manner.
á
Avoid all physical contact.
There should never be any pinching, patting or fondling. Other contact such as hugging, rubbing,
brushing, touching or kissing should also be avoided.
á
Avoid romantic relationships at work. Affectionate behaviors between employees
may be offensive to others and could be construed as sexual harassment if it
occurs frequently.
á
Company dress code must be followed by all employees. View policy in the Rockham Employee
Handbook.
VI.
Sexual
Harassment Complaint
A.
In
determining whether alleged conduct is sexual harassment, the Investigative Team
will consider all available evidence and the circumstances and context under
which the alleged incident occurred.
Although repeated incidents generally create a stronger claim of sexual
harassment, a single serious incident can be sufficient. Rockham 5G treats each incident confidentially on a
case-by-case basis, ensures everyoneÕs privacy is protected and ensures that
employees will also be treated lawfully.
B.
Sexual harassment could be perpetrated by
immediate supervisors, agents of the employer, supervisors in other areas,
co-workers, or non-employees. An
employee who wishes to complain of sexual harassment by another employee must initially
communicate the facts of the complaint to the supervisor most directly
concerned, excluding the person accused.
The complaint may be initially communicated orally, but it must be
presented in writing before any review or other action takes place.
Complaints
must state specific and credible allegations to warrant an investigation. Complainant generally has only 180 days
after alleged incident to file a complaint. It may become more difficult to prove
the allegations after significant time has passed and therefore prompt
reporting is encouraged.
C.
When deciding whether to investigate a
complaint, Rockham
5G will consider the desires of the victim but may initiate an
investigation without the victim's consent if circumstances warrant such
actions.
VII.
Complaint
Procedures
A.
If an employee feels victimized, they should
take quick action to get the problem resolved. Rockham 5G has developed the following
procedures to be used in handling an alleged sexual harassment case.
i.
Employee should record all information about
the incident as soon as possible.
Record the date, time, who was involved, names of any witnesses, and
full details of the alleged harassment.
ii.
Alleged victim should inform the alleged
harasser that they were offended and that they expect the behavior to stop
immediately. Many times this will
correct the situation, especially if the behavior was unintentional.
iii.If
after the alleged harasser is told of the offending behavior and the alleged
victim feels the situation is resolved, no further action is necessary. However, all documentation of the
incident should be kept in case any future incidents happen.
B.
If not satisfied with the alleged harasser's
actions or another incident occurs, the alleged victim should report to
supervisor most directly concerned, or to Janice Brendlinger in Human
Resources. A copy of the written
documentation should also be provided at this time.
i.
The person receiving the complaint must do the following things:
a.
Advise the complainant of the meaning and importance of this policy,
the seriousness of the complaint, the penalties for making improper complaints,
and the companyÕs commitment to prevent retaliation.
b. Make written notes of the
allegations.
c.
Explain the options for handling the complaint, and explain that the complaint
must be submitted in writing before any review or other action takes place.
d.
Advise the complainant of the companyÕs policy on confidentiality.
ii.
Complaints may be resolved
through either informal or formal processes as described below. Informal means
are encouraged as the beginning point, but the choice of where to begin rests
with the complainant. Additionally, a complainant may elect to withdraw a
complaint at any time; however, because
all egregious acts must be investigated, the company reserves the right to
investigate all complaints where necessary to protect the interests of the
company.
a. Informal Resolution Options
1. Individual Resolution
The complainant may attempt to resolve the matter directly with the accused
individual and report back to the official receiving the complaint within a
mutually agreed time.
2.
Mediation
The
complainant may request that an attempt be made to resolve the complaint
through mediation. If such a request is made, the official receiving the
complaint shall determine whether the accused is willing to engage in
mediation, and, if so, a mediator shall be selected by mutual agreement of the
complainant and the accused. The role of the mediator is to facilitate
discussion and to suggest alternative resolutions. The mediator does not
investigate the complaint or assign blame. The mediator will report the outcome
of the process to the official receiving the complaint.
3.
Reporting the Outcome of Informal
Resolution
The
official receiving the complaint will notify the Chief Operating Officer in
writing of the outcome of the informal resolution process.
b. Formal Resolution Options
1. Administrative Investigation and Resolution
The complainant may request that
the complaint be administratively investigated and resolved. Because all
egregious acts must be investigated, even in the absence of such a request, the
official receiving the complaint may initiate an administrative investigation
if, after consultation with the Chief Operating Officer, an investigation is
deemed necessary to protect the interests of the company. If the accused is an
employee, the investigation will be conducted by the accused's supervisor with
assistance from the official receiving the complaint:
a.
Make inquiries of those persons
who may be able to verify the truth of the complaint, especially including the
accused. (due regard must be given to the principles of confidentiality.) The
complainant should be given advance notice of the date when the accused will be
informed about the complainant's accusations.
b.
Communicate with the Chief
Operating Officer to determine whether there have been other complaints of
sexual harassment made to the company by the complainant or about the accused
c.
Prepare a written report of the
complainant
iii.Rockham 5G will initiate an investigation
immediately. The Investigative Team
will conduct an interview with the alleged victim within 3 business
days. All details will be discussed
and written documentation will be verified against alleged victimÕs statements.
The
Investigator will also interview the complainant (if different than the
alleged victim), the alleged harasser, and other persons who might have
valuable knowledge of the incident. Names and information will be kept
confidential as much as possible during this process.
iv.
Investigative Team will gather as much additional information as
possible to help with the final determination of the case. Such information as time sheets, emails,
expense reports, performance appraisals and disciplinary records will be used
to help understand the context of the incident.
VIII. Documentation
A.
After conducting
interviews and reviewing all information, a decision will be made by Investigative Team. A written finding will be issued within 7 days of
when the complaint was filed. Both
the alleged victim and alleged harasser will receive a copy of the
findings. Third party complainants
will only be notified that the investigation is concluded.
B.
The complaint will be
determined to be one of the following:
i.
Conclusive-the incident
was sexual harassment
ii.
Groundless-the incident
was not sexual harassment
iii.Inconclusive-the evidence was conflicting,
no eyewitnesses were able to support the complaint and/or there was
insufficient evidence to prove that harassment occurred.
IX.
Resolution
A.
If sexual harassment is
shown to have occurred, disciplinary action should be proportional to the
seriousness of the incident.
Disciplinary actions for violations of this policy should commensurate
with the nature of the violation and the harasser's disciplinary history. Disciplinary
action may lead up to and include termination of employment. Rockham 5G believes that those who violate
this policy should be responsible for their actions regardless of contributing
factors such as substance abuse emotional stress or personal problems. Disciplinary action may also include
required counseling, community service, financial restitution, educational
classes and/or other actions as determined by Investigative Team.
B.
If the complaint proves
to be unfounded or inconclusive, all parties will be reminded of Rockham 5G's
policy on sexual harassment and warned of the consequences of violating the
policy. A follow-up investigation
might be necessary to ensure all details and evidence pertaining to the
incident was uncovered. Investigative Team
will determine the need for an additional investigation.
X. Return to Work: Alleged Victim,
Complainants and Others
A.
Alleged victim,
complainant and others should expect to return to a positive, harassment-free
work area. Retaliation from alleged
harasser, co-workers or the company will not be tolerated.
B.
Alleged victim will be
made aware of all procedures and protective measures taken during the
investigation.
C.
Throughout the
investigation procedures, resolution period and afterwards, any and all appropriate
measures will be taken to protect the alleged victim, complainant and others
from harm caused by the alleged harasser's behavior.
XI. Return to Work: Alleged Harasser
A.
This policy cannot be
used to bring false charges. Anyone
filing a false complaint under this policy will be subject to disciplinary
action up to and including termination of employment.
B.
If the complaint is
determined to be unfounded, all necessary steps will be taken to ensure alleged
harassers reputation is restored and that he/she returns to a positive,
harassment-free work area.
XII. Conclusion
A.
This policy will be
reviewed and revised as needed every year and is subject to review and revision
at any other time as deemed necessary by The Investigator, Investigative Team,
and the Human Resource Department.
B.
Anyone wishing to
discuss this policy, a specific incident, or other matters concerning this
policy can contact the Investigator, Janice Brendlinger in the Human Resources
Department or their area supervisor.
All discussions will be strictly confidential.
9/23/13