1-13-3: PROCEDURE FOR REPORTING AN ALLEGATION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT:

   A.   An employee who either observes sexual harassment or believes herself/himself to be the object of sexual harassment should deal with the incident(s) as directly and firmly as possible by clearly communicating her/his position to the offending employee, and her/his immediate supervisor. It is not necessary for sexual harassment to be directed at the person making the report.

   B.   If the employee feels they have been subjected to conduct which violates this policy, they should immediately report the matter to the Department Head, County Human Resource Representative, or the County Board Chair. If unable for any reason to contact this person, or if the employee has not received a satisfactory response within five (5) business days after reporting any incident of perceived harassment, the employee should contact the County Board Chair. If the person toward whom the complaint is directed is one of the individuals indicated above, the employee should contact any higher-level supervisor in their reporting hierarchy.

   C.   Every report of perceived harassment will be fully investigated, and corrective action will be taken where appropriate. All complaints will be kept confidential to the extent possible, but confidentiality cannot be guaranteed. All allegations, including anonymous reports, will be accepted, and investigated regardless of how the matter comes to the attention of the county. However, because of the serious implications of sexual 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.

   D.   The employee experiencing what he or she believes to be sexual 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 county will not be presumed to have knowledge of the harassment.

   E.   Documentation of any incident may be submitted with any report (what was said or done, the date, the time, and the place), including, but not limited to, written records such as letters, notes, memos and telephone messages.

   F.   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 county. However, all county 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 one hundred eighty (180) days of the alleged incident(s) unless it is a continuing offense. A complaint with the EEOC must be filed within three hundred (300) days.

   G.   The charge process for violations of the law can be initiated by completing the form at https://www2.illinois.gov/DHR/Pages/default.aspx or by contacting the IDHR at [e-mail], or any of these offices:

 

Chicago Office	Springfield Office
100 W. Randolph St., 10th Floor	535 W. Jefferson Street, 1st Floor
Intake Unit	Intake Unit
Chicago, IL 60601	Springfield, IL 62702
[phone]	[phone]
[phone] (TTY)	[phone] (TTY)
[phone] (Fax)	[phone] (Fax)

 

Employees also can contact the Illinois Sexual Harassment and Discrimination Helpline at 1-877-236-7703. (Ord. 01-18-002, 1-16-2018; amd. Ord. 02-21-003, 2-18-2021)