(A) Prohibition on harassment.
(1) It is the city's policy to prohibit harassment and/or discrimination of any individual by another person on the basis of any protected classification including, but not limited to, actual or perceived race, creed, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability, sex, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic information or pregnancy. The purpose of this policy is not to regulate employees' personal morality, but to ensure that in the workplace, no one harasses another individual.
(2) Harassment consists of unwelcome conduct, whether verbal, physical or visual that is based upon a person's protected status as outlined above. The city will not tolerate harassing conduct that affects tangible job benefits, that interferes unreasonably with an individual's work performance or that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. Such harassment may include, for example, jokes about another person's protected status, or kidding, teasing or practical jokes directed to a person based on his or her protected status.
(3) Harassing conduct also includes, but is not limited to the following:
(a) Epithets, innuendoes, slurs, negative stereotyping or threatening, intimidating or hostile acts that related to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation or any other legally protected category;
(b) Written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward ian individual or group because of an individual's protected classification that is placed on walls, bulletin boards, or elsewhere on the employer's premises or circulated in the workplace.
(B) Prohibition on sexual harassment. It is unlawful to harass a person because of that person's sex. Sexual harassment is a form of discrimination. All persons have a right to work in an environment free from sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is unacceptable misconduct which affects individuals of all genders and sexual orientations. It is a policy of the City of Farmer City to prohibit harassment of any person by any municipal official, municipal agent, municipal employee, municipal agency or municipal office on the basis of sex or gender. All municipal officials, municipal agents, municipal employees and municipal agencies or municipal offices are prohibited from sexually harassing any person, regardless of any employment relationship or lack thereof.
(C) Definition of sexual harassment. This policy adopts the definition of sexual harassment as stated in the Illinois Human Rights Act, which currently defines sexual harassment as:
(1) Any unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors or any conduct of a sexual nature when:
(a) Submission to such conduct is made a term or condition of an individual's employment, either explicitly or implicitly;
(b) Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; or
(c) Such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.
(2) Conduct which may constitute sexual harassment includes, but is not limited to:
(a) Verbal harassment: sexual innuendos, suggestive comments, insults, humor, jokes about: sex, anatomy or gender-specific traits, sexual propositions, threats, repeated requests for dates; or, statements of a sexual nature about other employees, even outside of their presence.
(b) Non-verbal harassment: suggestive or insulting sounds (whistling), leering, obscene gestures, sexually suggestive bodily gestures, "catcalls," "smacking" or "kissing" noises.
(c) Visual: posters, signs, pin-ups or slogans of a sexual nature, viewing pornographic material or websites.
(d) Physical harassment: touching, unwelcome hugging or kissing, pinching, brushing the body, any coerced sexual act or actual assault.
(e) Textual/electronic harassment: "sexting" (electronically sending messages with sexual content, including pictures or video), the use of sexually explicit language, harassment, cyber stalking and threats via all forms of electronic communication (email/text/picture/video messages, intranet/online postings, blogs, instant messages and posts on social network websites, like Facebook and Twitter).
(3) The most severe and overt forms of sexual harassment are easier to determine. On the other end of the spectrum, some sexual harassment is more subtle and depends, to some extent, on individual perception and interpretation. The courts will assess sexual harassment by a standard of what would offend a "reasonable person."
(D) Procedure for reporting an allegation of sexual harassment or any other harassment.
(1) An employee who either observes sexual harassment or harassment or believes herself or himself to be the object of sexual harassment or other harassment should deal with the incident(s) as directly and firmly as possible by clearly communicating her or his position to the offending employee, and his or her immediate supervisor. It is not necessary for sexual harassment or other harassment to be directed at the person making the report.
(2) Any employee may report conduct which is believed to be sexual harassment, including the following:
(a) Electronic/direct communication. If there is sexual harassment or other harassment in the workplace, the harassed employee should directly and clearly express his or her objection that the conduct is unwelcome and request that the offending behavior stop. The initial message may be verbal. If subsequent messages are needed, they should be put in writing in a note or a memo.
(b) Contact with supervisory personnel. At the same time direct communication is undertaken, or in the event the employee feels threatened or intimidated by the situation, the problem must be promptly reported to the immediate supervisor of the person making the report, a department head, the City Manager or Administrator or the chief elected official of the municipality.
(c) The employee experiencing what she or he believes to be sexual harassment or other harassment must not assume that the employer is aware of the conduct. If there are no witnesses and the victim fails to notify a supervisor or other responsible officer, the municipality will not be presumed to have knowledge of the harassment.
(d) Resolution outside municipality. The purpose of this policy is to establish prompt, thorough and effective procedures for responding to every report and incident so that problems can be identified and remedied by the municipality. However, all municipal employees have the right to contact the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for information regarding filing a formal complaint with those entities. An IDHR complaint must be filed within 300 days of the alleged incident(s) unless it is a continuing offense. A complaint with the EEOC must also be filed within 300 days.
(3) Allegations of sexual harassment or other harassment made against an elected official of the governmental unit by another elected official of a governmental unit. In addition to the methods of reporting included above, an elected official may request an independent review of a complaint of sexual harassment or other harassment by another elected official. The request shall be made to the City Manager or the chief elected official of the municipality. The official receiving the request shall take immediate action in keeping with the procurement process of the municipality to retain a qualified individual or entity for the independent review of the allegations of sexual harassment in violation of this policy. The outcome of the independent review shall be reported to the corporate authorities.
(4) Documentation of any incident may be submitted with any report (what was said or done, the date, the time and the location), including, but not limited to, written records such as letters, notes, memos and telephone messages.
(5) All allegations, including anonymous reports, will be accepted and investigated regardless of how the matter comes to the attention of the municipality. However, because of the serious implications of sexual harassment or other harassment charges and the difficulties associated with their investigation and the questions of credibility involved, the claimant's willing cooperation is a vital component of an effective inquiry and an appropriate outcome.
(E) Prohibition on retaliation for reporting sexual harassment or harassment allegations.
(1) No municipal official, municipal agency, municipal employee or municipal office shall take any retaliatory action against any municipal employee or official due to a municipal employee's or official's:
(a) Disclosure or threatened disclosure of any violation of this policy; or
(b) Providing information related to an investigation or testimony before any public body conducting an investigation, hearing or inquiry into any violation of this policy; or
(c) Assistance with or participation in a proceeding to enforce the provisions of this policy.
(2) For purposes of this policy, retaliatory action means the reprimand, discharge, suspension, demotion, denial of promotion or transfer or change in the terms or conditions of employment of any municipal employee that is taken in retaliation for a municipal employee's or official's involvement in protected activity pursuant to this policy.
(F) Consequences of a violation of this policy. Any violation of this policy may be subject to discipline up to and including termination from employment.
(G) Consequences for knowingly making a false report. A false report is a report of sexual harassment made by an accuser to accomplish an outcome other than stopping sexual harassment or harassment or stopping retaliation for reporting sexual harassment or harassment. A false report is not a report made in good faith which cannot be proven. Given the seriousness of the consequences for the accused, a false or frivolous report is a severe offense that can itself result in disciplinary action. Any person who intentionally makes a false report alleging a violation of any provision of this policy shall be subject to disciplinary action or discharge pursuant to applicable municipal policies, employment agreements, procedures, employee handbooks and/or collective bargaining agreements.
(H) Whistleblower Act. The city requires elected and appointed officials, department heads and employees to observe high standards of business and personal ethics in the conduct of their duties and responsibilities and to practice honesty and integrity in fulfilling their responsibilities and to comply with all applicable laws and regulations.
(1) It is the responsibility of all elected and appointed officials, department heads employees to report violations or suspected violations in accordance with the Whistleblower Act, ILCS Ch. 740, Act 174, § 1 et seq.
(2) No elected or appointed officials, department heads, or employees who in good faith report a violation shall suffer harassment, retaliation or adverse employment consequences. Violation of this policy is subject to discipline, up to and including, termination of employment.
(Ord. 1061, passed 4-5-21)