[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Middleton
effective November 1996. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Personnel — See Ch. 68.
A.
It is the goal of the Town of Middleton to promote a
workplace that is free of sexual harassment. Sexual harassment of employees
occurring in the workplace or in other settings in which employees may find
themselves in connection with their employment is unlawful and will not be
tolerated by this organization. Further, any retaliation against an individual
who has complained about sexual harassment or retaliation against individuals
for cooperating with an investigation of a sexual harassment complaint is
similarly unlawful and will not be tolerated. To achieve our goal of providing
a workplace free of sexual harassment, the conduct that is described in this
policy will not be tolerated and we have provided a procedure by which inappropriate
conduct will be dealt with, if encountered by employees.
B.
Because the Town of Middleton takes allegations of sexual
harassment seriously, we will respond promptly to complaints of sexual harassment,
and where it is determined that such inappropriate conduct has occurred, we
will act promptly to eliminate the conduct and impose such corrective action
as is necessary, including disciplinary action where appropriate.
C.
Please note that while this policy sets forth our goals
of promoting a workplace that is free of sexual harassment, the policy is
not designed or intended to limit our authority to discipline or take remedial
action for workplace conduct which we deem unacceptable, regardless of whether
that conduct satisfies the definition of sexual harassment.
A.
In Massachusetts, the legal definition of sexual harassment
is as follows: "Sexual harassment" means sexual advances, requests for sexual
favors, and verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
(1)
Submission to or rejection of such advances, requests
or conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of
employment or is a basis for employment decisions; or
(2)
Such advances, requests or conduct has the purpose or
effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's work performance by
creating an intimidating, hostile, humiliating or sexually offensive work
environment.
B.
Under these definitions, direct or implied requests by
a supervisor for sexual favors in exchange for actual or promised job benefits,
such as favorable reviews, salary increases, promotions, increased benefits,
or continued employment, constitute sexual harassment.
C.
The legal definition of sexual harassment is broad, and
in addition to the above examples, other sexually oriented conduct, whether
it is intended or not, that is unwelcome and has the effect of creating a
workplace environment that is hostile, offensive, intimidating, or humiliating
to male or female workers may also constitute sexual harassment.
D.
While is not possible to list all those additional circumstances
that may constitute sexual harassment, the following are some examples of
conduct which, if unwelcome, may constitute sexual harassment depending upon
the totality of the circumstances, including the severity of the conduct and
its pervasiveness:
(1)
Unwelcome sexual advances, whether they involve physical
touching or not;
(2)
Sexual epithets, jokes, written or oral references to
sexual conduct, gossip regarding one's sex life, comment on a individual's
body, and comments about an individual's sexual activity, deficiencies, or
prowess;
(3)
Displaying sexually suggestive objects, pictures, or
cartoons;
(4)
Unwelcome leering, whistling, brushing against the body,
sexual gestures, or suggestive or insulting comments;
(5)
Inquiries into one's sexual experiences; and
(6)
Discussion of one's sexual activities.
E.
All employees should take special note that, as stated
above, retaliation against an individual who has complained about sexual harassment,
and retaliation against individuals for cooperating with an investigation
of a sexual harassment complaint, is unlawful and will not be tolerated by
this organization.
A.
If any employee believes that he or she has been subjected
to sexual harassment, the employee has a right to file a complaint with our
department. This may be done in writing or orally.
B.
If you would like to file a complaint you may do so by
contacting either the department head or the Town Administrator who in turn
will contact the Board of Selectmen.
A.
When we receive the complaint we will promptly investigate
the allegation in a fair and expeditious manner. The investigation will be
conducted in such a way as to maintain confidentiality to the extent practicable
under the circumstances. Our investigation will include a private interview
with the person filing the complaint and with witnesses. We will also interview
the person alleged to have committed sexual harassment. When we have completed
our investigation, we will, to the extent appropriate, inform the person filing
the complaint and the person alleged to have committed the conduct of the
results of that investigation.
B.
If it is determined that inappropriate conduct has occurred,
we will act promptly to eliminate the offending conduct, and where it is appropriate
we will also impose disciplinary action.
If it is determined that inappropriate conduct has been committed by
one of our employees, we will take action as is appropriate under the circumstances.
Such action may range from counseling to termination from employment and may
include such other forms of disciplinary action as we deem appropriate under
the circumstances.
In addition to the above, if you believe you have been subjected to
sexual harassment, you may file a formal complaint with either or both the
government agencies set forth below. Using our complaint process does not
prohibit you from filing a complaint with these agencies. Each of the agencies
has a short time period for filing a claim (EEOC: 180 days; MCAD: six months).
