12 the Other Press A02.09.01 SEXUAL AND What it is and wh December 10, 1992 HOWS ABOUT A LITTLE KISS (HOWS ABOUT I ORGANIZ .... JF YOU WANT TO KEEP YOUR JOB... THAT 1S / THE WOMEN 70 FIGHT SEXUAL HARASSMENT / POLICY STATEMENT Douglas College is committed to providing a learning and working environment which is free from sexual and personal harassment. The College considers harassment to be a serious violation of an individual’s fundamental rights. Members of the College community who engage in harassment may be subject toa range of disciplinary measures, up toand including suspension, dismissal or expulsion from the College. PROCEDURES/RULES STATEMENT DEFENFFIONS ‘1. Sexual Harassment (a) Sexual harassment means sexually-oriented verbal or physical behaviour which one would reasonably find to be unwanted or unwelcome by any individuals or persons in general, to whom such behaviour is presented, giving consideation toall surrounding circumstances. Suchbehavious could include, but is not limited to: - touching, patting or other physical contact; - leering, staring or the making of sexual gestures; - demands for sexual favours; - verbal abuse or threats; - unwanted sexual invitations; - physical assault of a sexual nature; - distribution or display of sexual or offensive pictures or materials; or unwanted questions or comments of a sexual nature, (b) Sexual harassment will often - but need not - be accompanied by an expressed or implied threat of reprisal or promise of reward. (c) Both males and females can be sexually harassed by members of either sex. (d) The legitimate study of topics of a sexual nature within the College’s curriculum is not considered sexual harassment. 2. Personal Harassment Personal harassment means a course of verbal or physical conduct, directed at a specific person, which causes substantial distress in that person and serves nolegitimate College- related purpose, It includes, but is not limited to: - physical threats or imtimidation; - physical assault; - words, gestures or actions, the natural consequence of which is to humiliate, alarm and abuse another person; - discriminatory conduct, based upon another person's race, colour, ancestry, oe of origin, political beliefs, marital status, physical or mental disability, sex, age, or sexual orientation. 3. Additional Guidelines (a) To constitute harassment, the behaviour need not always be repeated or consistent; in some circumstances, a single incident of a serious nature will suffice. (b) Harassment may occur between persons of the same or different status within the College community, including administrators, faculty members, staff members, contractors (or their employees) or students. 4, Other Definitions In this Policy: - “administrator” means a person employed by Douglas College in an administrative capacity; - “Complainant” means a person who alleges that he or she has been harassed; -“facultymember” meansan employee whois covered by the collective agreement between Douglas College and the Douglas College Faculty Association; - “harassment” means sexual or personal harassment, as defined in this Policy; - “Respordent” means a person who is alleged to have engaged in ha:assment contrary to this Policy; - “staff member" means an employee ne is covered by the collective agreement between Douglas College and the BCGEU; - “student’ means a person whois registered as a student at Douglas Colege. PETE ee Sa Cw eset Ass (a) This Policy is intended to address and eradicate harassment which occurs on or near College property, or which otherwiseinterferes withanindividual’semploymentor studies at the College. Off-premises behaviour whichis unrelated toan individual’semploymentorstudiesattheCollegeisnotcovered. (b) This Policy is subject to any applicable provisions contained in the Douglas College /DCFA or Douglas College/ BCGEU collective agreements. Where such a collective agreement provision applies and is inconsistent with a part of this Policy, the collective agreement provision will prevail to the extent of the inconsistency. (c) Where a complaint of harassment is made against a student, College Policies A17.01.02 (Student Conduct and Student Employee Relationships) or A10.01.03 (Studer User Conduct in Public Areas of the College) may apply. PROCEDURAL FAIRNESS (a) The College will deal with allegations of harassment in a procedurally fair, unbiased and timely manner. (b) All parties toa complaint will be provided with a copy of this Policy. (c) The Respondent will be informed of the nature of the complaint, and will be given a reasonable opportunity to respond. INTERIM RELIEF TheCollegePresidentmay take whatever interim measures he or she considers necessary inall thecircumstances, pending theinvestigation ofa pg rar of harassment. Such measures may include, but are not limited to, suspending one of the parties from the College, or ordering one of the parties to cease and desist from engaging in a particular type of behaviour, pending investigation. CONFIDENTIALITY AND ANONYMITY (a) Allegations of harassment may require the disclosure of sensitive information. In order to encourage persons who have been harassed to come forward, and to protect the rights and reputations of the Complainant and the Responden throughout the investigation process, the College will attempt to ensure that confidentiality is maintained. (b) Confidentiality must, however, be distinguished from anonymity. If a Complainant wishes to proceed with Formal Mediation or Formal Investigation, the Respondent must be made aware of the nature of the complaint, including the identity of the Complainant. INVESTIGATIVE COMMITTEES (a) Two invesigative committees will be formed; one for complaints of sexual harassment, and the other for complaints of personal harassment. Each committee will consist of a minimum of four members appointed by the Co lle ge President, and will include at least one administrator, one faculty member and one staff member. Where the Complainant or Respondent is a student, the College President may also appoint a student to the committee. (b) Each committee will appoint one of its members to act as the Chair. (c) The College President will appoint one alternative for each committee member. If a committee member is unable to serve, the alternate will take his or her place on the committee. (d) Eachcommittee member will be appointed fora period of two years. WOMEN HAVE FOUGHT AGAINST SEXUAL HARASSMENT AND WON, however, these cases are rare and are fought under the guise of ‘unfair dismissal’ or ‘sex discrimination’. The continuing problem of sexual harassment is not dealt with! (e) In situations where there is a reasonable apprehensio of bias on the part of acommittee member, that member will be replaced by the alternate.