Unlawful Harassment and Discrimination Policy
Policy text
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Source file: 4.17 Unlawful Harassment and Discrimination Policy.pdf. Policy dates appear on the original cover. Page links use the PDF's page order.
M.G.L. links open the Massachusetts Legislature’s website. Citations with no matching section open the cited chapter directory.
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Policy & Procedures No. 4.17
Subject:
Unlawful Harassment Discrimination
Policy
Issuing Authority: Effective Date: Review Date:
Chief of Police 02/12/2013 09/10/2023
References:
Review
Revision 01/27/2014 03/10/2019
Reissued 03/10/2014 04/24/2020
Dates: 01/30/2015 04/10/2021
02/14/2016 11/15/2022
03/20/2017
02/28/2018
CALEA STANDARDS: 26.1.3
I. POLICY STATEMENT:
It is the policy of the Canton Police Department to maintain a working environment free
from any form of discrimination and any form of harassment, sexual harassment,
inappropriate or disrespectful conduct, and communication of a disparaging or sexual
nature. The Town will not tolerate conduct which creates an intimidating, hostile,
humiliating, or sexually offensive workplace or work environment. Any form of
discrimination or unlawful harassment of any Town employee by another employee, a
supervisor, or an officer of the Town is unlawful and prohibited. 26.1.3 (1A,B)
The Canton Police Department recognizes the importance of an employee’s right to work
in a non-hostile environment regarding sexual harassment and all other forms of unlawful
harassment and discrimination. To that end, the Canton Police Department will take all
reasonable actions to ensure that no employee be subjected to any form of unlawful
harassment or discrimination by any member of the public.
II. DEFINITIONS:
A. Sexual Harassment: Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and
other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when: (a) submission to or
rejection of such advances, requests or conduct is made either explicitly or
implicitly a term or condition of employment or a basis for employment
decisions; (b) where sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or verbal or
physical conduct of a sexual nature creates a hostile, humiliating, intimidating or
offensive work place environment, whether intended or not, which materially
interferes with the employee’s ability to perform the job.
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“Sexual harassment” for purposes of this policy shall include the definitions of
sexual harassment as stated in guidelines issued by the United States Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in connection with Title VII of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 151B,
Section 3A, and Title I of Civil Rights Act of 1991.
B. Unlawful Harassment Any conduct that denigrates or show hostility toward an
individual(s) because of his/her race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex,
sexual orientation, ancestry, age, handicap or other such category protected under
the law that has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an
individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, humiliating, hostile or
offensive work environment.
C. Discrimination The unequal and unlawful treatment of persons in employment
related decisions because of race, color, religious creed, national origin, sexual
orientation, ancestry, age, handicap or other such category protected under the
law.
D. Employee A person hired or authorized to perform work, or carry out tasks,
duties, or responsibilities on behalf of the Canton Police Department, whether or
not the person receives compensation for these activities. A supervisor,
department head, or officer of the Canton Police Department is an employee of
the Canton Police Department for purposes of this policy. An independent
contractor or any employee of any independent contractor shall not be considered
an employee of the Canton Police Department for purposes of this policy unless
the independent contractor performs his/her work for the Canton Police
Department in a work place controlled by the Canton Police Department and
under the supervision of a Canton Police Department employee.
E. Workplace Any office, building, facility, vehicle, indoor area, or outdoor area
under the control of the Canton Police Department in which any employee is
expected or required to carry out the functions of his/her position.
F. Respondent(s) The person(s) accused of sexual harassment.
G. Supervisor The person to whom an employee reports or is responsible for the
performance of his/her assigned duties on a daily basis.
III. PROHIBITED CONDUCT
A. No employee or supervisor shall engage in any action towards any other Canton
Police Department employee which shall constitute sexual harassment under this
policy. Specifically, no one shall threaten or insinuate, either explicitly or
implicitly, that an employee’s refusal to submit to sexual advances will in any
way adversely affect the employee’s employment, evaluation, salary, assignment,
scheduling, or any other condition or employment or career progress. No one
shall engage in such behavior that may create an offensive or hostile work
environment.
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In addition, all employees are protected from harassment on the basis of their
race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender identity, age, handicap
(disability), participation in discrimination complaint-related activities, sexual
orientation, genetics, or active military or veteran status.
B. While it is not possible to list all those additional circumstances that may
constitute sexual harassment, the following are some examples of conduct which
if unwelcome, may constitute sexual harassment depending upon the totality of
the circumstances including the severity of the conduct and its pervasiveness:
- Unwelcome sexual advances - whether they involve physical touching or not;
- Sexual epithets, jokes, written or oral references to sexual conduct, gossip
regarding one’s sex life; comment on an individual’s body, comment about an
individual’s sexual activity, deficiencies, or prowess;
- Displaying sexual suggestive objects, pictures, cartoons;
- Unwelcome leering, whistling, brushing against the body, sexual gestures,
suggestive or insulting comments;
- Inquiries into one’s sexual experiences; and
- Discussion of one’s sexual activities
The following are some examples of conduct that may constitute unlawful
harassment:
- Slurs or other derogatory comments, objects, pictures, cartoons, or demeaning
gestures connected to one’s membership in a protected group.
The following are some examples of conduct that may constitute discrimination:
- Employment decisions solely on the race of different applicants; or
- Assignments solely on the age of an employee
IV. SUPERVISOR’S RESPONSIBILITY
A. Every supervisor shall communicate the Canton Police Department’s
Unlawful Harassment and Discrimination policy to his/her staff and shall
provide positive assurance that no employee is required to endure any form of
harassment, sexual harassment or discrimination.
B. Any supervisor in charge of a work place who knows of any harassment,
sexual harassment or discrimination shall take appropriate remedial action to
stop, correct, or terminate the behavior. This action shall be taken even if no
complaint is filed by an employee in connection with such harassment or
discrimination.
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C. No supervisor in charge of a work place shall permit any form of harassment,
sexual harassment or discrimination to be directed at any employee in the
work place by any vendor, customer, members or the public or any other
person present in the work place.
V. PROCEDURE
A. Reporting a charge of harassment or discrimination: 26.1.3 (1C,G)
Any employee who feels he/she has been or is being subjected to any form of
discrimination or unlawful harassment should document, in written detail, the
incident(s) or conduct and report it immediately, either in writing or in person, to
a Supervisor. If the harassment or discrimination is by a Supervisor, the
employee is to report it, either verbally or in writing, to the next level of
command. An employee making a claim should be willing to cooperate in the
investigation of the claim (See Procedure C). 26.1.3 (1D)
B. Retaliation: 26.1.3 (1E)
In all instances in which a complaint is made, the employee making the
complaint, or any witness involved in an investigation, will be afforded protection
from retaliation. Any form of retaliation against a complainant or witness is
unlawful and prohibited and will result in appropriate disciplinary action.
As with all other job-related concerns, it is preferable that an employee report a
charge of discrimination or sexual harassment to his/her immediate supervisor or
to the Chief of Police. The important thing, however, is that the matter be reported
and dealt with properly. Therefore, if an employee does not wish to report a
charge of discrimination or sexual harassment within his/her department, the
employee may report to one of the following people outside of his/her work unit:
The Town’s Human Resource Administrator/EEOC Officer (781) 821-2936, the
Town’s Administrator (781) 828-5000. The Employee Assistance Program
(EAP) is, or course, available for consultation and counseling regarding
discrimination and sexual harassment, but consultation with EAP will not result in
follow-up and investigation. 26.1.3 (1H)
A Supervisor who receives a complaint shall report the charge to the Chief of
Police through the proper chain of command, when possible, unless the charge
involves the Chief of Police. In such case, the Supervisor is directed to report the
charge to the Town Administrator.
The Chief of Police, the Town Administrator, or the EEOC Officer may discuss
the written complaint with the person bringing the charge if it is necessary to
determine if the allegation falls within the scope of the Sexual Harassment Policy.
If the Chief of Police or the Town Administrator determines that inappropriate
conduct has occurred, the complaint will be dealt with appropriately. If a positive
determination is made, the Chief of Police will ensure an impartial investigation is
conducted.
All complaint receivers and investigators shall be thoroughly educated in the
matte of sexual harassment charges and trained to pursue complaints in a neutral
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and unbiased manner. All investigations will be in accordance with the Town’s
specified procedures and guidelines.
C. Confidentiality:
Confidentiality in the investigation is of the utmost importance to protect the
complainant, respondent and the employer. Lack of confidentiality may lead to
damaged careers/reputations and may undermine confidence and trust in the
employer. All communications regarding the complaint, both written and oral,
should be confidential. Information should be disclosed only on a need to know
bases and with the understanding that the recipient has a duty to preserve
confidentiality.
D. Investigation:
All complaints shall be investigated by a trained and unbiased investigator
assigned by the Chief of Police. Any investigation shall be thorough and
impartial and shall be pursued with all practical discretion and confidentiality in a
timely manner. However, the rights of the respondent(s) shall not be comprised
by such confidentiality. If the conduct of any Town employee(s) forms the basis
of the complaint, the person investigating the complaint shall give the person
allegedly behaving in an offensive way an opportunity to discuss and respond to
the complaint; however, this procedure is not a criminal procedure and the
respondent does not have the right to question the complainant directly.
At the conclusion of the investigation, the person investigating the complaint shall
recommend to the Chief of Police a finding with regard to the complaint and the
behavior of the respondent. The basis for a finding in this administrative
procedure is the “preponderance of evidence” (not the “innocent until proven
guilty beyond a reasonable doubt” basis that applies to criminal procedures). The
Chief of Police shall inform the complainant and respondent of the results of the
investigation.
E. Disciplinary Action: 26.1.3 (1F)
If it is determined that inappropriate conduct has been committed by an employee,
the Town will take such action as is appropriate under the circumstances. Such
action may range from counseling to termination from employment, and may
include such other forms of disciplinary action as the Chief of Police deems
appropriate under the circumstances.
Discipline not limited to, the following:
1. Informal counseling of an offending party with a verbal warning as to the
consequences of a repeat offense;
2. Referral of the parties to a mediation program if both parties are willing to
pursue mediation;
3. Enrollment of an offending party in an appropriate training program;
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4. A formal letter of reprimand will be sent to the offending party. A copy of the
letter of reprimand will be placed in the offending party’s personnel file to be
removed in two (2) years if no further incidents occur;
5. Up to a maximum 30-day suspension without pay;
6. Demotion;
7. Involuntary termination of the employment of the offending party;
8. Any combination of the above.
In any complaint which is found to involve sexual harassment, the discipline
shall be determined by the Chief of Police.
F. Records:
Every Discrimination and Sexual Harassment Complaint shall be forwarded to the
Chief of Police through the chain of command whenever possible. All reports of
investigation, recommendations, and dispositions will be forwarded to the Chief
of Police when complete. Sanctions also will be filed in individual personnel files
in accordance with the Town’s personnel bylaw/collective bargaining agreements.
G. Appeal:
If the complainant or respondent disagrees with the recommendation of the Chief
of Police as to the course of action, the complainant or respondent may take the
complaint to the Town Administrator. The Town Administrator shall review the
complaint and the investigation and may, if it appears warranted, conduct a
separate investigation into the complaint. If merit is found in the complaint, the
Town Administrator or the EEOC may initiate any of the courses of action of this
policy or any other course of action as may be appropriate.
H. Liability and Sanctions: 26.1.3 (1F)
Employees may be personally liable if they engage in harassing, sexually
harassing or discriminatory behavior.
Any employee found to have engaged in harassment, sexual harassment or
discrimination in violation of this policy is subject to disciplinary action up to and
including termination.
Supervisors may potentially be personally liable if they knew or should have
known about incidents of sexual harassment, and did not take appropriate
corrective action.
The Department may not be held responsible in harassment, sexual harassment
and discrimination cases if it can show that it took prompt and appropriate
corrective action.
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I. Distribution of Policy: 26.1.3 (1K,L)
This policy shall be given to each employee as soon as possible upon hiring, and
annually thereafter. A copy shall be made available by any officer upon request.
A permanent copy will be made on the Town’s I-Drive for easy accessibility by
all department employees.
J. State and Federal Remedies: 26.1.3 (1 I,J)
In addition to the above, if any department employee believes they have been
subjected to discrimination or any unlawful harassment, they may file a formal
complaint with either or both of the governing agencies set forth below. Using
our complaint process does not prohibit one from filing a complaint with these
agencies. Each of the agencies has a short time period for filing a claim (EEOC –
180 days; MCAD – 6 months).
The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (US EEOC)
JF Kennedy Federal Building
Government Center, Room 475
(617) 565-3200
The Massachusetts Commission against Discrimination (MCAD)
Boston Office: Springfield Office:
One Ashburton Place – Room 601 State Office Building
Boston, MA 02108-1516 436 Dwight Street
(617) 727-3990 Springfield, MA 01103
(413) 739-2145
State Office of Affirmative Action
One Ashburton Place, Room 213
Boston, MA 02108-1516
(617) 727-7441
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
One Congress Street, 10th Floor
Boston, MA 02114
(617) 565-3200 or 800-669-4000
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