[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Bath as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted 9-17-2001]
It is the policy of the Mayor and Board of Trustees of the Village
of Bath to maintain a work environment free of unlawful discrimination
for all employees. "Discrimination" is defined as unequal treatment
because of race, color, sex, religion, age, marital status, Vietnam
Era status or sexual orientation. The Mayor and Board of Trustees
of the Village of Bath recognize that harassment based on the above
is, among other things, disruptive to good business practice in that
it distracts from the Village's goal of providing the best possible
service to the residents and visitors of our community at the lowest
possible cost. Therefore, the Village Board's policy is that
sexual harassment of its employees is prohibited. This policy not
only applies to internal interactions between employees, but to employees'
action toward and treatment to external contacts, such as the public.
Sexual harassment is a violation of Section 703 (Part 1604) of Title
VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on the basis of gender. It is
also a violation of § 296 of the New York Executive Law
(Human Rights Law) on the basis of sex/gender.
A.
Federal and state case law has determined that unwelcome sexual advances,
requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of
a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when:
(1)
Submission to such conduct is made, either explicitly or implicitly,
a term or condition of an individual's employment;
(2)
Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used
as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; or
(3)
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.
B.
Courts have also held employers legally liable for:
(1)
Sexual harassment by coworkers where the employer knew or should
have known of the conduct but failed to take immediate corrective
action to prevent further conduct;
(2)
Sexual harassment by nonemployees on the employer's premises,
unless the employer proves it took immediate and corrective action;
or
(3)
Retaliation against any person for making a sexual harassment allegation.
The Village of Bath is also cognizant of its exposure to legal
liability for quid pro quo and hostile environment sexual harassment
and seeks to protect/limit such exposure to liability by using preventive
measures such as, but not limited to:
A.
Expressing strong disapproval of inappropriate conduct which may
be construed as sexual harassment.
B.
Establishing a Board policy prohibiting sexual harassment that is
posted and well publicized.
C.
Showing employees how to file complaints with assurances of confidentiality,
impartiality and quick/thorough resolution.
D.
Making counseling available for both the alleged harasser and the
victim.
Village of Bath department heads, managers, supervisors, and
employees must refrain from such conduct or behavior. Allegations
of sexual harassment will be investigated immediately and thoroughly.
The facts, when compared to the legal standard for evaluating sexual
harassment claims, will determine the response to each allegation.
Substantiated claims of sexual harassment will be met with appropriate
corrective/disciplinary action, up to and including discharge. All
information gathered in the deposition of each allegation will be
handled in a confidential manner.
Sexual harassment is a form of unlawful sex discrimination and
will not be tolerated in any Village department any more than harassment
based upon gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, color, national
origin, religion, disability, and other EEOC protected categories.
A.
When an employee has a complaint of sexual harassment, the complaint
should be brought promptly to the attention of his or her immediate
supervisor. If the employee does not prefer, or does not feel comfortable
discussing the complaint with his or her supervisor, the employee
should refer the matter to his or her respective department head or
to the Mayor and Board of Trustees. The department head or the Mayor
and Board of Trustees have the authority and the responsibility to
reach a resolution to the complaint. If the complaint cannot be successfully
resolved, the employee has the right to contact the New York State
Division of Human Rights, and/or the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission.
B.
The complaint will be investigated, and if the complaint is substantiated,
prompt action will be taken to stop the harassment immediately and
prevent recurrence.
C.
Time frames. Concerns and complaints of harassment and other forms
of discrimination will normally be reviewed and resolved with 15 working
days from the point at which the employee notifies his or her respective
department head or the Mayor and Board of Trustees.
D.
Confidentiality. All concerns and complaints of harassment and other
forms of discrimination will be resolved confidentially by the respective
department head or Mayor and Board of Trustees. All persons contacted
by the department head or Mayor and Board of Trustees in his/her/their
efforts to resolve the matter shall hold discussions and documents,
if any, in a confidential manner. A breach of this confidentiality
requirement by the Village's agents (e.g., department heads,
managers, and supervisors) will be treated as retaliation resulting
in disciplinary action up to and including discharge.
E.
Notification to employees.
(1)
All Village employees will be informed of the availability of these
internal grievance/complaint procedures and their right to bring their
concerns of harassment and other forms of discrimination to their
respective department head or Mayor and Board of Trustees.
(2)
Village employees may also exercise their legal options to file complaints
with the New York State Division of Human Rights, and/or the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission, and any other state, federal or
local enforcement agencies.
F.
Recordkeeping. All records of informal complaints/grievances and
dispositions thereof shall be maintained and reviewed on a regular
basis by the department head and/or the Mayor and Board of Trustees
to detect any patterns in the nature of the grievances. Records so
retained shall be confidential except where disclosure is required
by law.
