SexualHarassment_Policy.pdf

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DEPARTMENT OF DEVELOPMENTAL SERVICES

Title: SEXUAL HARASSMENT PREVENTION POLICY

Effective:

Authority: California Fair Employment and Housing Act; Title VII of the

Civil Rights Act of 1964

NANCY BARGMANN, Director Date Department of Developmental Services

I. SEXUAL HARASSMENT PREVENTION POLICY DIRECTIVE

Policy

The Department of Developmental Services (DDS) is committed to providing a safe work environment where all employees are treated respectfully and professionally.

Consistent with this commitment, it is the policy of DDS to prohibit any form of sexual harassment. This sexual harassment prevention policy, which aligns with

DDS’ Equal Employment Opportunity policy, applies to all employees (including applicants for employment, volunteers, interns, contractors, and other categories under state and federal law) and extends to conduct in connection with an employee’s work, even when the conduct takes place away from DDS’ premises, such as during business-related travel or off-site functions, including telework, that employees may attend as part of their duties. DDS adopts and maintains this sexual harassment prevention policy to prevent sexually harassing conduct in the workplace and encourage professional and respectful behavior among its employees. All employees are required to comply with this policy.

DDS may take appropriate corrective or disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, against any employee found to have violated this policy.

May 28, 2024

May 28, 2024

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Departmental Standard

DDS prohibits any form of sexual harassment, which includes harassment based on a person’s sex/gender, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation.

DDS is committed to ensuring compliance with this policy with respect to all benefits of employment, including recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, transfer, employee discipline, pay and other forms of compensation, training, and general treatment during employment.

Employee Rights

• The right to a work environment free of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.

• The right to file a complaint alleging a violation of this policy against a co-worker, supervisor, manager, vendor, or contractor.

• The right to file a complaint of retaliation based on participation in a protected activity against a co-worker, supervisor, manager, vendor, or contractor.

• The right to a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation of alleged violations of this policy by a trained DDS representative or designee.

• The right to be advised of the outcome of an investigation.

• The right to file a complaint directly with the California Civil Rights

Department (CRD), the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

(EEOC), or other appropriate state or federal agencies.

Retaliation Prohibited

This policy prohibits DDS employees from engaging in any act of retaliation against individuals who claim a violation of this policy, pursue such a claim, cooperate in the investigation of such claims, or who seek to enforce this policy. Any individual engaging in retaliation against a DDS employee in violation of this policy shall be subject to appropriate corrective or disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, regardless of job level or classification.

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II. CONDUCT PROHIBITED BY THIS POLICY

Sexual Harassment

As used in this policy, sexual harassment is defined as harassment based on a person’s sex/gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation.

Sexual harassment includes, but is not limited to, unwelcome or unsolicited sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, conversations regarding sexual activities, verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, or verbal or physical conduct based on sex. Sexually harassing conduct does not need to be motivated by sexual desire to constitute a violation of this policy.

Individuals of any gender can experience sexual harassment, and the recipient of harassment does not need to be someone of a different gender or sex than the harasser. In addition, a person may experience sexual harassment even if they are not the target of the harassment. Anyone affected by conduct defined in this policy may experience sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment is categorized into two types:

1. Quid Pro Quo (Latin for “this for that”): When someone conditions a job, promotion, work benefit, or any term or condition of employment on another person enduring or submitting to conduct of a sexual nature. For example, offering a promotion in exchange for sexual favors. In a quid pro quo scenario, the submission to or rejection of the conduct is used as the basis for employment-related decisions.

2. Hostile Work Environment: When sexually harassing conduct unreasonably interferes with a person’s work performance and/or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment. You may experience sexual harassment and the effects of a hostile work environment even if the sexually harassing conduct was not directed at you.

Examples of behavior prohibited by this policy include, but are not limited to:

• Any behavior that is sexual nature or that sexualizes the workplace.

• Making demands for sexual favors in exchange for employment benefits, whether express or implied.

• Unwelcome sexual advances, flirtation, or teasing.

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• Sending sexually suggestive or obscene letters, invitations, notes, e-mails, voice mails, or gifts.

• Making unwelcome comments about sex, gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation, including slurs, jokes, remarks, or epithets, even if the comments are not sexual in nature.

• Leering or making obscene, vulgar, or sexual gestures, including whistling or staring at someone in an offensive or sexually suggestive manner.

• Making unwelcome comments about a person’s physical appearance, clothing, or body that are sexual in nature. Examples include describing someone as “sexy,” “hot,” having an “amazing body,” etc.

• Deliberate, unwelcome physical contact or impeding or blocking a person’s movement.

• Pressure for sex or pressure for dates, including situations that began as reciprocal relationships and later ceased to be reciprocal.

• Repeatedly asking a person to socialize outside of work when the person has previously said “no” or has not shown interest, including acts of retaliation following a negative response.

• Bringing into the workplace and displaying or distributing in any form sexually suggestive or derogatory objects, pictures, cartoons, posters, or other items, even if the material is not accessible to other staff.

A person that experiences sexual harassment is not required to first express in any way to the individual(s) engaged in the conduct that their behavior is unwelcome in order to constitute a violation of this policy.

Retaliation

As used in this policy, retaliation is defined as any adverse employment action taken against an employee because the employee engaged in activities protected under this policy. Protected activities include, but are not limited to, reporting or assisting in reporting suspected violations of this policy and cooperating in investigations or proceedings arising out of alleged violations of this policy.

An “adverse employment action” is conduct or action that materially affects the terms and conditions of the employee’s employment status or is reasonably likely to deter the employee from engaging in protected activity. Even actions that do

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Examples of retaliation may include the following: demotion; suspension;

reduction in pay; denial of a merit salary increase; failure to hire or consider for hire; refusing to promote or consider for promotion; harassing another employee;

denying employment opportunities; changing an employee’s work assignments;

denying an accommodation; refusing to communicate with an employee when otherwise required by job duties; or excluding an employee from job-related activities.

III. RESPONSIBILITIES OF SUPERVISORS AND MANAGERS

Supervisors and managers are responsible for setting the tone to promote a work environment that is free from sexual harassment.

Supervisors and managers are required to:

• Adhere to and enforce this policy.

• Foster a culture of respect and professionalism in the workplace.

• Not engage in, condone, tolerate, or leave uncorrected conduct that violates this policy.

• Take immediate and appropriate corrective action to prevent future conduct that may violate this policy and document measures taken.

Supervisors and managers who reasonably suspect a potential violation of this policy are required to immediately report the matter to their manager and to DDS’

EEO Officer in the Office of Human Rights and Advocacy Services (OHRAS) or a worksite EEO coordinator. Failure by a supervisor or manager to take immediate and appropriate action to address potential violations of this policy may result in appropriate corrective or disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, regardless of job level or classification.

IV. RESPONSIBILITIES OF EMPLOYEES

All DDS employees shall adhere to this policy and shall not engage in any form of sexual harassment. Employees have a responsibility to promptly report conduct that may violate this policy as soon as possible after an alleged incident occurs.

Failure by employees to promptly report conduct that may violate this policy may result in appropriate corrective or disciplinary action.

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There is no chain of command when reporting suspected policy violations. An individual does not need supervisor or manager approval to report a potential violation of this policy. If the alleged offender is the employee’s supervisor or manager, the employee should report the conduct to any other supervisor or manager, DDS’ OHRAS, or a worksite EEO Coordinator.

Employees are required to:

• Adhere to this policy.

• Conduct themselves in a respectful and professional manner.

• Immediately report conduct that may violate this policy regardless of the degree to which they may be involved.

• Cooperate fully with DDS’ investigation of complaints alleging a violation of this policy, including but not limited to, participating in all investigative interviews.

V. MANDATED HARASSMENT PREVENTION TRAINING

All DDS employees shall complete harassment prevention training once every two years as mandated by Government Code section 12950.1.

VI. THE COMPLAINT PROCESS

Anyone can file a complaint alleging a violation of this policy. A sexual harassment complaint may be brought forward orally, either in person or over the phone, or in writing. Written complaints can be made using DDS’ EEO Discrimination

Complaint Form, DS 312, which is available on DDS’ intranet. Employees may file a complaint with DDS within 365 days of the alleged harassing event. OHRAS shall document and track progress on all complaints filed.

The following process applies when a sexual harassment complaint is filed:

• An intake review of the complaint shall be completed to determine whether the alleged conduct implicates an activity defined in this policy, and whether an investigation is warranted.

• If an investigation is warranted, a trained EEO/workplace investigator shall be assigned to complete a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation.

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• Interviews of the complainant (i.e., the person bringing forward the concerns), applicable witnesses, and the respondent (i.e., the person against whom allegations have been made) may be conducted, as well as a review of relevant documents and other available evidence.

• If an investigation is warranted, a written report of findings shall be prepared for review by DDS’ EEO Officer, Office of Legal Affairs, and the Chief Deputy

Director-Operations or designee.

• If an investigation substantiates allegations of a violation of this policy, the

Chief Deputy Director-Operations or designee shall refer the report to the employee’s management for appropriate remedial, corrective, or disciplinary action.

OHRAS shall review all complaints received to determine whether a complaint alleges a violation of this policy. OHRAS’ review may include consultation with other divisions to determine appropriate action to be taken and may result in the referral of complaints to other divisions when the allegations fall outside the scope of this policy. If a complaint falls under this policy, DDS and/or its designee shall investigate the facts and circumstances of any alleged violation, where appropriate. In the event DDS determines that an investigation is not warranted based on the circumstances of a complaint, DDS shall take other appropriate, effective action on a case-by-case basis to address concerns that are brought forward. Even in the absence of a formal complaint, DDS may initiate an investigation where it has reason to believe that an employee may have violated this policy. Moreover, even where a complainant conveys a request to withdraw their initial complaint, DDS may continue its investigation to ensure that the workplace is free from harassment and retaliation as defined in this policy. DDS shall also evaluate anonymous complaints and, where appropriate, investigate or take other effective action on a case-by-case basis. The method and level of the investigation, if applicable, may vary according to the details provided in the anonymous complaint.

While the investigative process is treated as confidential, the confidentiality of the complaint under this policy cannot be guaranteed. DDS’ investigations of alleged policy violations include interviewing employees and reviewing evidence, which may result in the disclosure of information relating to the facts and/or witnesses during the course of an investigation.

All employees shall cooperate fully with any investigation of alleged violations of this policy. This includes, but is not limited to, reporting for investigative interviews, truthfully and thoroughly answering questions and/or providing statements, furnishing documents and other evidence requested by the

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Failure by employees to cooperate fully with any investigation of alleged violations of this policy may result in appropriate corrective or disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, regardless of job level or classification.

VII. DISSEMINATION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF POLICY

This policy shall be disseminated department-wide to all DDS employees through posting on the DDS’ intranet and emailed to all staff at the time of enactment. This policy shall be available for review in the OHRAS and Personnel offices. This policy shall be distributed to all employees as part of harassment prevention training mandated by Government Code section 12950.1.

This policy shall be made available in alternate formats upon request.

VIII. FILING COMPLAINTS OUTSIDE OF DDS

Filing a complaint with DDS provides the organization with an opportunity to address concerns promptly at the lowest level and remedy the situation. However, all employees may also file a complaint directly with the following entities at any time:

California Civil Rights Department

2218 Kausen Drive, Suite 100

Elk Grove, CA 95758

(800) 884-1684 (voice), (800) 700-2320 (TTY), or California’s Relay Service at 711 https://www.calcivilrights.ca.gov

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

450 Golden Gate Avenue 5 West

P.O. Box 36025

San Francisco, CA 94102-3661

(800) 669-4000 or (510) 735-8909 (deaf/hard-of-hearing callers only) http://www.eeoc.gov/employees

Each agency has its own rules for accepting and processing complaints.

Employees may follow-up with the above-mentioned agencies prior to filing a complaint to learn more about their respective processes and requirements.

https://www.calcivilrights.ca.gov/ http://www.eeoc.gov/employees

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Questions regarding this policy should be directed to:

Office of Human Rights and Advocacy Services

(916) 654-1888, ohras@dds.ca.gov mailto:ohras@dds.ca.gov