Posts filed under ‘B. Unlawful Harassment’
Unlawful Harassment
Unlawful Harassment
- Our Commitment to Providing a Workplace Free of Harassment
Transition Projects does not allow harassing or discriminatory behavior by any employee towards any other employee or person. We are committed to a work environment in which all individuals are treated with respect and dignity, and will not tolerate the harassment of our employees by anyone, including supervisors, coworkers, clients, contractors, vendors or employees out-stationed from another agency.The Agency encourages reporting of all perceived incidents of discrimination or harassment. It is our policy to investigate such reports. Transition Projects prohibits retaliation against any individual who reports discrimination or harassment or participates in an investigation of such reports.
- Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment constitutes discrimination and is illegal under federal, state and local laws. For the purposes of this policy, sexual harassment is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when, for example:- submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment;
- submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; or
- such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.
Sexual harassment may involve individuals of the same or different gender. Harassing behaviors may include: unwanted sexual advances or requests for sexual favors; sexual jokes and innuendo; verbal abuse of a sexual nature; commentary about an individual’s body, sexual prowess or sexual deficiencies; leering, whistling or touching; insulting or obscene comments or gestures; display in the workplace of sexually suggestive objects or pictures; and other physical, verbal or visual conduct of a sexual nature.
- Other Forms of Unlawful Harassment
Harassment on the basis of any other protected characteristic is also strictly prohibited. Under this policy, harassment is verbal or physical conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual because of his/her race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, ancestry, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, on-the-job injuries, marital or veteran status, citizenship, source of income, union participation or activities, or any other characteristic protected by law or that of his/her relatives, friends or associates, and that:- has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment;
- has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance; or
- otherwise adversely affects an individual’s employment opportunities.
Harassing conduct includes: epithets, slurs or negative stereotyping; use of offensive slang terms denoting race, age, national origin, disability, etc.; threatening, intimidating or hostile acts; denigrating jokes; and written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual or group and that is placed on walls or elsewhere on the employer’s premises or circulated in the workplace.
- Reporting Discrimination or Harassment
Management provides and supports a dispute resolution procedure for receiving and resolving complaints alleging discrimination in employment relations or harassment in the workplace. An employee who believes that he or she may have been subjected to any violation of this policy, or an employee who witnesses or suspects any violation of this policy, should report the matter immediately to his/her supervisor. An employee who is not comfortable discussing the matter with his or her supervisor, regardless of the reason, should report it directly to the Executive Director or to the Human Resources Director. Appropriate corrective action will be taken (up to and including termination) where violations of this policy have occurred.
The Executive Director is responsible for ensuring that all complaints are promptly and thoroughly investigated in as confidential a manner as is possible under the circumstances. No employee will be discriminated or retaliated against in any way for bringing up a question or complaint.
False and malicious complaints of harassment, discrimination or retaliation may result in appropriate disciplinary action.