(a) The Village of Lordstown (hereinafter referred to as the “Village”) will not tolerate nor excuse any form of discrimination or harassment based upon gender, pregnancy, childbirth, race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, marital status, sexual orientation, family care or medical leave status, or veteran status. This policy includes a prohibition of sexual harassment, but such prohibition is included in more detail in a separate Sexual Harassment Policy. The following policy is to identify the complaint procedures available to victims, as well as the disciplinary penalties that can be imposed for discriminatory conduct or behavior. This policy applies to all Elected and Non-Elected Public Officials and Full and Part-Time Employees (hereinafter referred to as “Employees”).
(b) Discrimination and harassment include any verbal, physical, and visual conduct that creates an intimidating, offensive, or hostile working environment or that interferes with work performance. Such conduct constitutes discrimination and harassment when:
(1) Submission to the conduct is made either an explicit or implicit condition of employment;
(2) Submission to or rejection of the conduct is used as the basis for an employment decision; or
(3) The harassment interferes with an Employee’s work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.
(c) Discriminatory conduct can take may forms and includes, but is not limited to, the following: slurs, jokes, statements, gestures, assault, impeding or blocking another’s movement or otherwise physically interfering with normal work, pictures, drawings or cartoons based upon an Employee’s sex, race, color, national origin, religion, age, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, ancestry, marital status, sexual orientation, family care or medical leave status, or veteran status. It is illegal and against the Village’s policy for any Employee, male or female, to harass another Employee or to create a hostile working environment by initiating or participating in any of these prohibited activities.
(d) The Village is committed to providing a workplace that is free of all forms of discrimination and will not condone any harassment of its Employees. It will take direct and immediate action to prevent such behavior and to remedy any reported harassment incidents. All Employees, including supervisors and managers, will be subject to severe discipline, up to and including discharge, for any act of discrimination and harassment they commit.
(e) Any Employee who feels victimized by discrimination or harassment shall make a formal complaint. Formal complaints should be filed by the Employee with the Employee’s immediate supervisor if possible. If not possible to report directly to his or her supervisor, an Employee shall make a formal complaint to the Mayor. Formal complaints may be oral or written and may report harassment not involving the complaining Employee.
(f) Supervisors shall be responsible for monitoring the behavior of their Employees for signs of harassment. Supervisors shall initiate investigations of all discrimination and harassment complaints whether informal or formal. Supervisors must recognize that informal complaints are typically characterized by an Employee who orally requests advice from a supervisor. This may include the situation in which the statement is made: “I don’t want to file a complaint”, but then discusses an incident that may be discriminatory. Supervisors who directly observe potentially harassing conduct must consider these observations equivalent to any other form of “complaint.” The investigatory process is indicated where a supervisor feels the observed conduct may indeed represent prohibited behaviors.
(g) When the Village receives a discrimination or harassment complaint a careful investigation of the matter will occur, with questioning of all Employees who may have knowledge of either the incident in question or similar problems. Both the complaint and the investigative steps and findings will be documented as thoroughly as possible. As much as possible, confidentiality will be maintained with respect to all complaints and only those who need to know about such a complaint will be advised of its existence. The Investigation Process shall proceed as set forth below:
(1) Interview Complainant.
(2) Make an immediate judgment as to whether the complainant and/or the accused harasser can continue to work together pending the investigation.
(3) Interview the alleged harasser.
(4) Interview any/all witness(es) suggested by either party.
(5) Interview any friends, relatives or health-care professionals suggested by either party.
(6) Review the personnel files of both parties and witness-employees.
(7) Prepare a summary of the investigation.
(8) Submit a summary report with all forms, witness statements, documents, photos, etc. to the Mayor (or if the Mayor is involved in the complaint, to the Village attorney.)
(h) No Employee will be subject to any form of retaliation or discipline for pursuing a discrimination or harassment complaint.
(Ord. 42-2001. Passed 8-6-01.)