(A) Confidentiality. Employees are encouraged to report incidents of harassment and/or ask questions about conduct that may be considered harassment of any kind in confidence and without fear of retaliation. The disclosure of allegations shall be restricted to individuals directly involved with the incident or in the investigation process and shall not be discussed with anyone else. It is as important to protect the confidentiality rights of the alleged harasser as it is the rights of the complainant. Any employee bringing a good faith harassment complaint or assisting in the investigation of a complaint will not be adversely affected in the terms and conditions of employment, nor discriminated against or discharged because of the complaint or assistance.
(B) False or frivolous complaints. False and frivolous charges refer to cases where the complainant is using a harassment complaint to accomplish some end other than stopping harassment based upon gender, ethnicity, race, religious affiliation, age and mental and physical disability, and more specifically sexual harassment. This does not include charges made in good faith which cannot be proven. Given the seriousness of the consequences for the accused, a false and/or frivolous charge is a severe offense that will result in disciplinary action as suggested in division (F)(1) below.
(C) Initial step.
(1) An employee who believes that she or he is being harassed may first identify the offensive behavior to the offending party as directly and firmly as possible and request that it stop.
(2) Employees are particularly urged to take this step if they believe that the offensive conduct may be unintentional.
(3) However, if the employee does not feel comfortable confronting the offending party; feels threatened or intimated by the situation; or the behavior continues after a confrontation with the offending party, a written complaint should be filed in accordance with the county policy.
(D) Reporting.
(1) All complaints should be in writing, describing in detail the following:
(a) Name of the offending party;
(b) Nature of the offending conduct;
(c) Date, time and location of the incident;
(d) Whether the offending party was advised by the victim to stop; and
(e) Whether the offending party stopped suspect action after notification by the victim.
(2) The written complaint must be filed in accordance with the county’s procedure. Complaints should be filed with the department supervisory personnel. In the event that the alleged harasser is a non-employee, the incident shall be reported to supervisory personnel or department head who shall take all appropriate action and may wish to confer with the State’s Attorney’s Office or the Sheriff’s Department in regards to the incident. In the event that the supervisory personnel is the alleged harasser, the employee should then file the complaint with the next higher supervisory personnel or the department head. If an appointed department head or elected official, other than the Finance Chair, is the alleged harasser, the complaint should be filed with the Finance Committee Chair. In the event the Finance Committee Chair is the alleged harasser, the complaint should be filed with the County Board Chair.
(E) Investigation.
(1) Once the proper authority has been notified that authority shall designate an investigating party which that authority deems as having the knowledge, ability and expertise to conduct a thorough and complete investigation, the investigating party shall immediately initiate a thorough investigation. The complainant shall be assured confidentiality in the investigation to the extent possible. The complainant should be made aware, that in order to investigate the complaint to its fullest extent, it may be necessary to make his or her name known and/or necessary for the complainant to confront the alleged harasser. Confidentiality shall be maintained in conducting a property investigation.
(2) In order to assure a proper and thorough investigation, all investigations of any harassment charges shall be conducted in the following manner.
(a) The investigating party shall conduct an interview with the employee who filed the complaint. The intent of the interview is to determine a true and complete account of the complaint. The following information should be sought in the interview: severity of conduct; the number and frequency of acts of alleged harassment; the apparent intent of the alleged harasser; the relationship of the parties; and the relative work environment.
(b) The investigating party shall interview all other individuals who witnessed or may have witnessed the incident and/or who may have knowledge of the incident.
(c) The investigating party shall interview the alleged harasser and inform the individual that a complaint has been made against him or her. The individual shall be informed that the incident is not to be discussed with co-workers and that retaliatory action against the complainant will not be tolerated and will result in disciplinary action.
(d) The investigating party shall review any other relevant information or evidence and/or interview any other relevant witnesses.
(e) The investigating party shall make a written record of the interviews and any other aspects of the investigation, noting the suggested disciplinary action set forth in this policy.
(f) The investigating party shall prepare a written summary of the findings of the investigation. These findings shall then be reported to either the department head of the alleged harasser; the Finance Committee Chair in the case that an appointed department head or elected official (other than the Finance Committee Chair) is the alleged harasser; or the County Board Chair if the alleged harasser is the Finance Committee Chair, for appropriate action.
(F) Disciplinary action.
(1) The department head, Finance Committee Chair or County Board Chair shall review the report of the investigation and make a determination as to whether the alleged harasser has committed harassment based upon gender, ethnicity, race, religious affiliation, age or mental and physical disability, or more specifically, sexual harassment. If so, the appropriate action and/or discipline shall be determined and imposed by the department head, Finance Committee Chair or County Board Chair, as appropriate.
(2) If the department head, Finance Committee Chair, or County Board Chair is not the supervisory personnel of the alleged harasser or is not authorized to impose disciplinary action on the alleged harasser, any or all action within the bounds of the department head, the Finance Committee Chair or the County Board Chair should be taken to alleviate the unwarranted and unwelcome action of the alleged harasser.
(3) (a) The discipline imposed should reflect the severity of the improper conduct, taking into consideration the nature and frequency of the conduct; the relationship of the parties involved; the intent of the offending party; and any other relevant information.
(b) Severity shall be determined and discipline administered using the following as guidelines only:
1. Type A offense. The harassment is of a verbal, visual and/or non-physical nature. The suggested discipline for this type of behavior is a verbal reprimand;
2. Type B offense. The harassment is of a physical nature or the offender has made sexual or other propositions. In addition, a second occurrence of a type A offense or any retaliation of the accused directed toward the complainant is considered a type B offense. The recommended discipline for this behavior is a written reprimand; and
3. Type C offense. The harassment is of a serious physical nature, meaning coerced or forced encounters or assault. Also, type C offenses are third occurrences of a type A offense or second occurrences of type B offenses. It is recommended that this behavior result in suspension or dismissal from employment.
(4) Any charges criminal in nature are required to be reported by the department head, Finance Committee Chair or County Board Chair to the State’s Attorney. The charges will be processed independent of the harassment investigation. In all cases, the complainant shall be notified of the results of the investigation and the discipline imposed, if any.
(5) Complainants may also exercise their rights to contact the State Department of Human Rights or the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission under the United States Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), being 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq., if deemed necessary. However, these agencies, as well as the county, encourage the resolution of the issues at the local level so employees are encouraged to first report their initial complaint to their immediate supervisor, department head, Finance Committee Chair, County Board Chair, respectively and to seek a remedy using these procedures before accessing state or federal agencies.
(Ord. passed 11-28-2011)