Provided 6-17-16 1516 RTKL 0181 PHILADELPHIA SCHOOL DISTRICT Office of School Safety Directive #18 SUBJECT: EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY POLICY I. POLICY A. The School District of Philadelphia maintains an employer/employee working environment free of discrimination and/or harassment, including that discrimination/harassment which is based on race, color, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, ancestry, national origin, handicap, and/or disabled or Vietnam era veteran status. B. Proper disciplinary action will be taken, up to and including dismissal, against any employee, supervisor, or administrator who engages in such prohibited conduct. Disciplinary action will also be taken against any supervisor or administrator who allows such conduct to occur without taking appropriate action. C. All School District Police Officers are encouraged to report any occurrences of discrimination, sexual harassment, or other equal employment opportunityrelated misconduct existing within the School District of Philadelphia. This includes both personal incidents and those that are witnessed. D. The School District seeks to recruit, hire and place into available jobs the most qualified persons and to administer personnel matters such as compensation, benefits, promotion, transfers, training, layoffs, discipline, terminations and School District sponsored educational, social, and recreational programs in accordance with this policy. E. In addition to applying equal employment principles in all its personnel decisions, the School District is committed to Affirmative Action to assure equal opportunity. It shall take positive steps to make its policy known and to encourage all qualified minorities, women, handicapped persons, and covered veterans to seek employment with or advancement within the School District. II. PROHIBITED CONDUCT A. School Police Officers are indisputably prohibited from engaging in any act, action, or form of conduct which is discriminatory, and based on race, color, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, ancestry, national origin, handicap, and/or disabled or Vietnam era veteran status. 1. Discriminatory Action or Conduct: To clarify the purposes of this directive, discriminatory action or conduct is any act, action, or form of conduct which infringes on an employee’s rights, entitlements, or responsibilities, because of the employee’s membership in one or more of the protected classes or groups as listed in the preceding paragraphs. 1 - 18 2. 3. B. Sexual Harassment: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against any individual with respect to his/her compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of the individual’s gender. Sexual harassment can occur in a variety of circumstances, including, but not limited to the following: a. The victim as well as the harasser may be a woman or a man. The victim does not have to be one of the opposite sex. (Man-man or woman-woman). b. The harasser can be the victim’s supervisor, an agent of the employer, a supervisor in another area, a coworker, or a non-employee. c. The victim does not have to be the person harassed but could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct. d. Unlawful sexual harassment may occur without economic injury to or discharge of the victim. e. The harasser’s conduct must be unwelcome. Retaliation: Defined as any act, action, or form of conduct taken against an employee which interferes with an employee’s terms, conditions, rights, entitlements, or responsibilities of employment because the individual has opposed any unlawful employment practice, make a charge, testified, or assisted in any manner, in any investigation, proceeding, or hearing under local, state, or federal discrimination laws. Examples of prohibited conduct include, but are not limited to: 1. Deliberate physical conduct with a sexual intent, such as touching, slapping, pinching, patting, rubbing, grabbing, poking, brushing against another employee’s body, or touching the clothing covering the immediate area of the complainant’s intimate parts. 2. A sexually oriented gesture, sounds, remarks, jokes, stories, or comments about a person’s sexuality or sexual experience made in front of any employee. Included are whistling, exposing one’s self, or sexually explicit comments. 3. Contemptuous, demeaning, or belittling remarks, jokes, stories, or comments about a person’s race, gender, ethnicity, religion, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, or sexual orientation made in the presence of any employee. 4. Preferential treatment or promise of preferential treatment for submitting to sexual conduct, including soliciting, or attempting to solicit any employee to engage in sexual activity for compensation or reward. 5. Subjecting or threatening to subject an employee to unwelcome sexual attention or conduct or intentionally making job performance more difficult because of the employee’s gender. 6. Placing an employee in an inferior job assignment or not allowing an employee to advance based on a person’s race, sex, ethnicity, 2 - 18 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. III. religion, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, or sexual orientation. Continuing to implore an individual to engage in sexual behavior after being warned of the individual’s disinterest. Example: Repeatedly asking a person on a date after refusal. Displaying or advertising sexually explicit material throughout the work place. Included are pictures of men or women in provocative clothing or sexually explicit clothing. Displaying signs with the purpose of segregating any employee by gender in any area of the workplace (other than the restrooms and similar private locker rooms.) Displaying materials that have a negative connotation in regards to an individual’s race, sex, ethnic background, religious background, physical or mental disability, association, age or sexual orientation, such as cartoons, drawings, posters, signs, etc. Retribution for having filed a complaint or cooperated in an investigation of discrimination and/or sexual harassment. This includes, but is not limited to harassment, discipline, demotion or discharge because of a charge being filed, testifying, assisting, or participating in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing. Disqualifying personnel for promotion, transfer, and/or other personnel action requests due to the individual’s age, eligibility for retirement, or nearness to such eligibility for retirement. PROCEDURES A. In the event discrimination or harassment is experienced, it is encouraged to contact the Director of the Office of Talent at 215-400or the Office of General Counsel of the School District of Philadelphia 215-400B. The employee may seek either an informal or formal resolution to his/her complaint: 1. INFORMAL Where behaviors may be offensive and the offended party has a desire to stop the behaviors without formal procedure, the employee may notify the offending party directly, but is not required to do so. The employee may also request a supervisor to intervene by notifying the alleged offender that the specific offensive behavior(s) will not be tolerated in the work place. In such case the supervisor must discuss the matter with the alleged offender, and, if warranted require that he/she participate in nondisciplinary counseling. The supervisor shall document actions taken and inform the Director of the Office of Talent in writing. Copies will also be forwarded to the Office of General Counsel of the School District of Philadelphia. The accused shall have the right of representation during his/her interview with the supervisor as required by the Collective Bargaining Agreement. 3 - 18 2. C. FORMAL An individual who believes that he/she has been sexually harassed or discriminated against can file a complaint requesting an investigation into the allegation. Formal complaints shall be documented and signed by the complainant. The supervisor shall conduct a thorough and complete investigation. *To the greatest extent allowed by law, confidentiality shall be maintained within the confines of the investigation of the alleged prohibited behavior. All parties will be treated with respect and due process. The procedure for investigating and resolving complaints will be as follows: 1. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY OFFICER The administrator of non-school offices will act as the EEO officer. The administrator shall seek advice and assistance from the next higher administrator, if the administrator believes that he/she lacks the capacity to conduct a thorough and complete investigation or the alleged misconduct. *NOTE: If the administrator in charge is the alleged offender or is alleged to have been responsible for the offense, such person's direct line supervisor will conduct the investigation. 2. CONDUCTING INVESTIGATIONS a. Any Supervisor or EEO Officer receiving a complaint of sexual harassment or discrimination shall write the details of the complaint and have the complainant sign it. Copies of this document will be forwarded to the Office of General Counsel of the School District of Philadelphia and the Director of the Office of Talent. All complaints against a District employee shall be received, investigated and disposed of in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Policy, and complainants shall be notified of the final disposition/action taken by the District. b. If the complaint involves sexual assault, rape or conduct of a criminal nature, the Philadelphia Police Department shall be contacted and a report of the incident made. If there is any question whether the conduct complained of constituted criminal activity, the Office of General Counsel of the School District of Philadelphia should be contacted and consulted. c. The assigned investigator shall attempt to secure statements from all participants in, and witnesses to the alleged incident. The accused shall have the right of representation during his/her interview as required by the applicable collective bargaining agreement or practice. d. The assigned investigator shall complete all investigations within sixty (60) days from the filing date of the complaint. Extenuating circumstances for not being able to comply with the deadline must be approved by the Director of the 4 - 18 e. IV. Office of Talent. The extension must be a specified period of time not exceeding twenty-five (25) days, and must be communicated to the complainant. If the charge is substantiated, the EEO Officer shall determine the appropriate level of discipline consistent with the School District's strong policy against sexual harassment and discrimination. Such discipline as is deemed appropriate will be initiated in accordance with District disciplinary procedures and applicable collective bargaining agreements. Documents regarding substantiated charges of misconduct shall be placed in the accused employee's personnel file. Documents regarding unsubstantiated charges shall not be placed in personnel files, but shall be maintained by the Office of General Counsel of the School District of Philadelphia in a confidential EEO file established expressly for retaining complaints of sexual harassment against employees of the District. EMPLOYEE RESPONSIBILITY A. B. C. D. E. F. All School District Police Officers are prohibited from participating in any conduct involving discrimination or harassment. School Police Officers are highly encouraged to report any violations of this directive to their supervisor or commander. In the event that the supervisor or commanding officer is the offending party, the employee is to directly contact the next highest level of authority. All employees are required to cooperate fully in any investigation and promptly appear for any scheduled interviews. Supervisors are accountable for themselves and also the behavior of their subordinates and non-employees present in the workplace. Supervisors will be held to a higher standard for violation of this directive and/or failure to take the appropriate action in preventing or correcting instances of discrimination or harassment. Supervisors/Commanders must monitor compliance with this policy. Complaints received from persons who wish to remain anonymous will include all specific facts relative to the incident of discrimination or harassment. This will be processed in the same manner as other complaints. 7-6-04 Revised 11-23-10 JUNE 2015 BY ORDER OF THE CHIEF SAFETY EXECUTIVE OFFICE of SCHOOL SAFETY 5 - 18