(A) Public meetings. Any person who conducts his/herself in such a manner as to violate this subchapter at a public meeting shall be warned once to cease and desist from such actions. If the person refuses or fails to stop such activities, he/she shall be removed from the meeting by the police and warned that future similar actions shall result in the immediate ejection from the meeting and/or may be banned from future meetings on a permanent or temporary basis in accordance with Kentucky law.
(B) Employee at workplace. Any employee who believes he or she has been subjected to offensive; and harassing behavior by a co-worker, member of the public, elected official, supervisor or vendor has an obligation to directly inform the offending person that the conduct is offensive and must stop.
(C) If this direct communication with the offending person is not successful, the employee should promptly report the incident(s) and the names of the individuals involved to his or her supervisor, or in the case of a department head to the Mayor, who shall cause a preliminary investigation of all such claims and take appropriate corrective action, if any.
(D) Confidentially to the extent possible will be maintained and no reprisals or retaliation will result from the good faith reporting of intolerant behavior. Reports made in bad faith may be subject to disciplinary action.
(E) In determining if the alleged conduct constitutes workplace violence or workplace bullying, the totality of the circumstances, the nature of the conduct, the frequency and scope of the conduct, and the context in which the alleged conduct occurred will be investigated by the Mayor or the Mayor's designee.
(F) Any employee found to have engaged in such impermissible behavior may in accordance with the city's personnel policies be subject to disciplinary action, including, but not limited to, warning, suspension or termination subject to applicable procedure requirements.
(G) Any appointed or elected official found to have engaged in such impermissible conduct may be subject to sanction by the City Council up to and including a public reprimand; referral by the Mayor to the Northern Kentucky Ethics Enforcement Committee for investigation and determination of additional sanctions; and/or referral by the Mayor to the County Attorney for possible prosecution under KRS 522.020.
(Ord. 17-05, passed 7-5-2017)