[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Town of Glocester 5-16-1996, amended 10-15-1998 (Ch. III, § 2, 3-02-11, of the 1991 Code). Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
A. 
It is the policy of the Town of Glocester to maintain a working environment that is entirely free of sexual harassment in any form. Supervisors, managers and all other employees, elected officials and appointees are absolutely prohibited from engaging in sexual harassment of Town of Glocester employees, elected officials, appointees, visitors, and members of the general public. Sexual harassment is unlawful. Because sexual harassment can be destructive to morale as well as to the Town of Glocester's reputation and because it can be extremely costly to the Town of Glocester in terms of lost productivity, lost employees, and out-of-pocket expense, no act of sexual harassment can serve the Town of Glocester or be incidental to any service on account of which any employee has been employed. Thus, any act or pattern of sexual harassment by any employee, elected official or appointee of the Town of Glocester is beyond the scope of his or her authority as an employee, agent, supervisor or servant of the Town of Glocester, which may include the termination of employment or appointment. Such conduct will subject the employee or appointee to discipline up to termination of employment or appointment.
B. 
The Town of Glocester will administer all provisions of this policy without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, handicap, Vietnam-era veteran status, or disabled veteran status.
This policy applies to all employees, elected officials, and appointees of the Town of Glocester.
A. 
The Glocester Town Council has overall responsibility for this policy.
B. 
The Finance/Personnel Director is responsible for the implementation and daily administration of this policy.
C. 
Supervisory employees at all levels are responsible for implementing and enforcing this policy, and for assisting in investigating and processing complaints with the utmost priority and consideration for the rights of all concerned.
D. 
Every employee, elected official, and appointee is responsible for reporting to his/her supervisor or the Finance/Personnel Director or, if appropriate, the Town Council, any incident of sexual harassment that he/she witnesses or learns of. The Town of Glocester will maintain the highest degree of confidentiality possible with respect to such reports, consistent with its obligation to investigate thoroughly all such reports.
A. 
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 or appointment;
(2) 
Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment or appointment decisions affecting such individual;
(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. 
Some examples of conduct towards employees, elected officials, or appointees prohibited by this policy include:
(1) 
Physical assaults of a sexual nature, such as:
(a) 
Assault, rape, sexual battery, molestation or threats or attempts to commit these acts; or
(b) 
Unwelcome intentional physical conduct, or threats of such conduct, which is sexual in nature, such as touching, pinching, patting, grabbing, brushing against another person's body, or poking another person's body.
(2) 
Unwanted sexual advances, propositions or other sexual comments, such as:
(a) 
Sexually oriented gestures, noises, remarks, jokes or comments about a person's sexuality or sexual experience;
(b) 
Giving rewards or promises of rewards for submitting to sexual conduct, or reprisals or threats of reprisal for refusal to submit to sexual conduct;
(3) 
Sexual or discriminating displays in the workplace such as:
(a) 
Displaying or otherwise publicizing in the work environment materials that are sexually revealing, suggestive, demeaning or pornographic; or
(b) 
Displaying signs or other materials purporting to segregate an employee, elected official, or appointee by sex in any area of the workplace (other than restrooms and similar semi-private lockers/changing rooms).
(4) 
Retaliation against an employee, elected official, or appointee for making a complaint under this policy or for assisting or cooperating in an investigation of a complaint under this policy;
(5) 
Failure to cooperate fully with investigation of harassment complaints.
A. 
The Finance/Personnel Director is responsible for publicizing this policy to all employees, elected officials, and appointees by inclusion in the Town of Glocester's Employee Handbook.
B. 
The Finance/Personnel Director or his/her designee is responsible for developing a bulletin board notice to all employees, elected officials, and appointees for posting at the time that this policy is adopted by the Town of Glocester. The notice will emphasize the importance of the policy to the Town of Glocester, the obligation of every employee, elected official, or appointee to report any incident of sexual harassment, the availability of supervisors and administrative staff to receive such reports and the confidentiality with which these reports will be treated.
C. 
A copy of the policy will be given to all current employees, elected officials, and appointees, and new employees, elected officials, and appointees will be given a copy upon hire or commencement of duties. Employees, elected officials, and appointees will provide written acknowledgment that they have received the policy and understand its terms.
A. 
Employees, elected officials, and appointees may report sexual harassment to any supervisor or manager, or directly to the Finance/Personnel Director, 1145 Putnam Pike, Chepachet, RI 02814, 401-568-3342, or, if the Finance/Personnel Director is involved in the allegation of sexual harassment, to the Glocester Town Council, 1145 Putnam Pike, Chepachet, RI 02814, 401-568-1102.
B. 
The supervisor or manager will promptly inform either the Finance/Personnel Director or, if the Finance/Personnel Director is involved in the allegation of sexual harassment, the Glocester Town Council of any report of sexual harassment.
C. 
The Finance/Personnel Director or the Glocester Town Council or his/her/their designee will thoroughly investigate the report of sexual harassment as promptly as possible, keeping the matter as confidential as is practicable. After investigation, he/she/they will take appropriate action in response to a proven instance of sexual harassment and the complaining employee, elected official, or appointee will be notified of the action taken. If, after investigation, the Finance/Personnel Director or the Glocester Town Council is unable to conclude that any act of sexual harassment has occurred, he/she/they will meet with the complaining employee(s), elected official(s), appointee(s) and with the complained-against employee(s), elected official(s), or appointee(s) individually to explain both the results of the investigation and the Town of Glocester's policy on sexual harassment.
D. 
It is the responsibility of every employee, elected official or appointee to cooperate fully with any investigation under this policy.
A. 
Sexual harassment.
(1) 
Employees and appointees are subject to discipline, up to and including discharge, for any act of sexual harassment which is proven to the satisfaction of the Town of Glocester.
(2) 
The appropriate measure of discipline will be determined on the basis of the Town of Glocester's assessment of the nature and severity of the misconduct, along with any other relevant factors.
(3) 
For any act of sexual harassment or retaliation by an elected official the Council may take such remedial and other action as it considers appropriate, and within the scope of its authority. Such action may include referral of charges of sexual harassment to other agencies.
B. 
Retaliation. It is unlawful to retaliate in any way against an individual who has complained of sexual harassment or cooperated in an investigation of a complaint of sexual harassment. An employee or appointee may be disciplined, up to and including discharge, for any such act of retaliation. The appropriate measure of discipline will be determined on the basis of the Town of Glocester's assessment of the nature and extent of the retaliation and any other relevant factors brought to the attention of the Town of Glocester.
A. 
State and federal employment discrimination agencies are: the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights, which may be contacted at 10 Abbott Park Place, Providence, RI 02903; and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which may be contacted at the Boston Area Office, One Congress Street, Suite 1001, 10th Floor, Boston, MA 02114.
B. 
State and federal agencies generally expect that employees, elected officials, and appointees will have first recourse to the procedures under an employer's sexual harassment policy in order to put a stop to sexual harassment or retaliation. It is the purpose of this policy that normally no employee, elected official, or appointee should ever have to go to an outside agency in order to resolve any situation involving sexual harassment.