LETC Week 5 - EEO AND HARASSMENT

Sexual Harassment is

A form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII applies to employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local governments.

sexual harassment is

NOT the only type of harassment officers encounter within the VA environment, it is one of the most common.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines define two forms of sexual harassment which the U.S. Supreme Court deemed actionable under section 703 of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as forms of sex discrimination.

Quid Pro Quo Hostile Environment

Hostile Environment:

Requires the showing of frequent, non-trivial acts of a sexual nature that create the effect of a hostile, offensive, or intimidating working atmosphere. No monetary damages are required to be shown and it does not require impact of an economic benefit.

Harassment is

Unwelcome conduct that is based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information.

VA Patient Harassment is

Unwelcome physical and/or verbal behavior that interferes with a veteran's access to and sustained engagement with VA health care and/or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive health care environment.

Quid Pro Quo:

When an employee is presented with a "this for that" type of request or demand. Occurs when a manager or authority figure offers or hints that they will give the employee something of value (pay increase, promotion, better hours) in return for satisfaction of a sexual demand.

Officers will

document the incident with a complete and detailed Incident Report.

It is important to note that VA Patient harassment pertains to incidents where

employees are not involved.

Contact your Harassment Prevention Coordinator (HPC) or EEO counselor as

soon after the incident as possible to evaluate your options.

Officers should notify

their supervisor of all reported or observed instances of harassment taking place on VA property.

Sexual harassment occurs when

this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.

Officers should consult their

Chief of Police about procedures approved by regional counsel.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces

Federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination.

Quid Pro Quo: This kind of sexual harassment can be committed ONLY by

an authority figure or someone who can make or effectively influence employment actions such as promotion, demotion, and termination of employment.

VA Patient Harassment is also

any unwelcome behavior which offends, annoys, threatens, intimidates, or puts a person in fear of their safety and/or creates a hostile environment.

Discrimination and harassment can occur

at any time for various reasons. Done purposefully or unintentionally, the effects can have a greater impact on the victim than many of us realize.

In providing referral information to the victim, officers should be

cognizant of their actions so the victim does not feel passed off and unimportant to the officer.

The victim does not have to be the person harassed but

could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.

Active police presence and patrol can

help alleviate some of these issues by creating an environment where the veteran feels the harassing behavior is less likely to occur.

Discrimination against an individual because of gender identity, including transgender status, or because of sexual orientation is discrimination because of sex

ii a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

It is helpful, but not required, for the victim to

inform the harasser directly that the conduct is unwelcome and must stop.

harassment is illegal when

it is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment or when it results in an adverse employment decision (such as the victim being fired or demoted)

Officers must consider their

legal boundaries and limitations set by their jurisdiction and local guidance.

The Department of Veterans Affairs goal is to

provide the highest level of care and customer service for the many veterans who receive services offered by the VA.

These laws protect you against employment discrimination when it involves:

unfair treatment because of your race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. Harassment by managers, co-workers, or others in your workplace, because of your race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. Denial of a reasonable workplace accommodation that you need because of your religious beliefs or disability. Retaliation because you complained about job discrimination, or assisted with a job discrimination investigation or lawsuit.

Sexual Harassment consists of

unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.

The harasser's conduct must be

unwelcome.

Remember that reports are

viewed by stakeholders outside of the police service and your actions show that the agency initiated appropriate actions following notification of the harassment.

While harassment happens to both women and men, statistics show that

women, as well as individuals from the LGBT community are targeted at a higher rate. In most occurrences, men were the main offenders.