[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Lloyd 7-10-2002
by L.L. No. 2-2002.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Personnel policies-- See Ch. A102.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also repealed former Ch. 26, Sexual
Harassment, adopted 10-26-1994 by L.L. No. 4-1994; amended in its entirety
3-26-1996 by L.L. No. 3-1996.
[Amended 4-14-2004 by L.L. No. 2-2004]
It is the policy of the Town of Lloyd to provide and maintain a work
environment which is free from unlawful discrimination based on sex (with
or without sexual conduct), race, color, religion, natural origin, sexual
orientation, age, disability and any other class protected by law (collectively
referred to as “discriminatory harassment” or “harassment”).
Harassment based on these characteristics is a form of unlawful discrimination
and is prohibited in each and every work environment and each and every situation
which directly impacts the work environment.
The Town of Lloyd considers discriminatory harassment to be a form of
employee misconduct and considers this type of misconduct to be a serious
offense, which will not be tolerated. Allegations of harassment will be investigated
thoroughly and, if substantiated, will be met with appropriate corrective
and/or disciplinary action commensurate with the seriousness of the offense(s),
and in accordance with the parameters of applicable collective bargaining
agreements and/or state law.
A.
SEXUAL HARASSMENT
(1)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(2)
(3)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
OTHER UNLAWFUL HARASSMENT
(1)
(2)
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have
the meanings indicated:
Unwelcome sexual advances, request for sexual favors, and other verbal
or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
Submission to such conduct is made explicitly or implicitly a term or
condition of an individual's employment (e.g., promotion, training, assignments,
etc.);
Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used
as a 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 creating an intimidating, hostile, or
offensive working environment.
Sexual harassment is gender neutral and may involve members of the same
or different gender.
Examples of specific behaviors that may be considered sexual harassment
include, but are not limited to:
Spoken or written words related to an employee's sex.
Any sexual advance that is unwelcome.
Sexually oriented comments.
Showing or displaying pornographic or sexually explicit objects or pictures
in the workplace.
Offensive touching, patting or pinching.
Requests for sexual acts or favors.
Abusing the dignity of an employee through insulting or degrading sexual
remarks or conduct.
Threats, demands or suggestions that an employee's work status is contingent
upon her/his toleration of or acquiescence to sexual advances.
Subtle pressure for sexual activities.
Leering at a person.
Harassment on the basis of any other protected characteristic is also
prohibited. Under this policy, prohibited harassment is verbal or physical
conduct that is offensive to or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual
because of his/her race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability
or marital status, and that:
Harassing conduct includes, but is not limited to, epithets, slurs or
negative stereotyping; threatening, intimidating or hostile acts; denigrating
jokes and display or circulation in the workplace (including through e-mail)
of written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion
toward an individual or group, based on an individual's protected class.
B.
Individuals and conduct covered.
(1)
This policy applies to all applicants and employees of
the Town of Lloyd and prohibits harassment, discrimination and retaliation
whether engaged in by fellow employees, by a supervisor or manager or by someone
not directly connected to the Town (e.g., an outside vendor, consultant or
citizen).
(2)
Conduct prohibited by these policies is unacceptable
in the workplace and in any work-related setting outside the workplace, such
as during business trips, business meetings, and business-related social events.
A.
Reporting harassment.
(1)
If an individual is subjected to a situation which he/
she believes constitutes discriminatory harassment in violation of this policy,
the Town recommends and encourages that the employee confront the harasser
directly and advise the harasser that his/her behavior is not welcomed, it
is offensive and will not be tolerated; note that neither this policy nor
state/federal law requires that an individual tell an alleged harasser to
stop his/her actions. Realizing that this could be uncomfortable for the employee
who believes that he or she has been harassed, the Town recognizes that this
step might not be possible, especially depending on the various personalities
involved.
(2)
If an alleged incident of harassment cannot be resolved
directly between the parties involved, a written or verbal complaint should
be filed by the affected employee with the employee's immediate supervisor,
department head, or the Town's designated official to handle these complaints.
(3)
All harassment complaints will be investigated as promptly
as possible and resolved within a reasonable time after the receipt of the
complaint. The Town's designated official will coordinate an investigation
of the complaint.
(4)
The investigator in connection with the Town's designated
official will issue a report addressing the allegations in the complaint and
objectively document all relevant factual findings of the investigation, with
the assistance of the Town's counsel, if necessary. The Town's designated
official may make recommendations as to the appropriate action to be taken
based upon the investigation.
(5)
The report shall be forwarded to the Town Board, and
the Board shall then meet, and with the advice of counsel, determine the most
appropriate action to take based upon the recommendation and report of the
investigator. Thereafter, the results of the investigation will be communicated
back to the complainant and the subject of the complaint.
(6)
Retaliation against any individual making a harassment
complaint or assisting in the investigation of such a complaint is strictly
forbidden. Retaliation, like discrimination and harassment, is against the
law and is a serious violation of this policy. Employees who retaliate against
other employees who complain about harassment and/or participate in investigation
of harassment will be subject to disciplinary action.
B.
Miscellaneous.
(1)
In the event a complaint of discriminatory harassment
is determined to be founded, the Town will take disciplinary action in accordance
with the provisions of applicable collective bargaining agreements and/or
state law.
(2)
If disciplinary charges are filed against an employee
on the grounds that the Town has determined the employee is guilty of unlawful
harassment, the accused employee may exercise his/her rights through the disciplinary
procedure provided for in his/her labor contract and/or state law.
(3)
Reporting of a false complaint is a serious act. In the
event it is found that the individual bringing the complaint has made knowingly
and intentional false accusations, the Town will take action in accordance
with the provisions of the applicable collective bargaining agreement and/or
state law.
(4)
All information gathered during an investigation of a
harassment complaint will be handled in a confidential manner, to the extent
possible.
(5)
Retaliation against any individual making a harassment
complaint or assisting in the investigation of such a complaint is prohibited.
Retaliation is a serious violation of this policy which may result in disciplinary
action.
(6)
This policy does not preclude the filing of discriminatory
harassment complaints with either the New York State Division of Human Rights
or the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or the pursuing of
any other remedies as permitted by law.
C.
Responsibilities of managers/supervisors.
(1)
All managerial and supervisory personnel of the Town
of Lloyd shall be responsible for enforcing this policy and shall have particular
responsibility for ensuring that the work environment under their supervision
is free from discriminatory harassment and its effects. Failure of a manager
or supervisor to comply with this responsibility may result in disciplinary
action.
(2)
All managerial and supervisory personnel who receive
discriminatory harassment complaints will be responsible for immediately forwarding
such complaints to the Town Board.
(3)
The Town Board will conduct periodic training for managerial
and supervisory personnel on the issues surrounding discriminatory harassment,
its effects and its appearances, and the role and responsibility of managerial/supervisory
personnel in preventing incidents of harassment complaints.
(4)
The Town Board shall distribute this policy to all Town
employees and all others covered by its parameters. Copies of this policy
will be distributed to new employees as they are hired.
(5)
Copies of this policy will be conspicuously posted.
[Amended 4-14-2004 by L.L. No. 2-2004]
The complaint form to be used for employees to file a complaint is that
set forth in the Town of Lloyd Personnel Employee Handbook as Appendix A,
as enacted and amended from time to time by resolution of the Town Board.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix A is on file in the Town offices.
