NBCI PREVENTION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT TRAIN THE TRAINER August 2011

Prepared By: Leroy Nesbitt

WHY ARE WE HERE?

 Issues of sexual misconduct are emotionally charged. Allegations proved or unproved can destroy an organization or career  It is against the law and legal liability can attach for individuals and organizations.

 Organizations must have staff leadership on issues of sexual harassment

THE BOTTOM LINE

 As a matter of Christian and legal principle, sexual harassment and sexual misconduct are

totally unacceptable

.

 Sexual harassment and/or sexual misconduct by any person are

prohibited

forms of personal behavior.

TRAINING ACCOMPLISHMENTS

 A commitment to an open and honest dialogue around difficult issues.

 Increased learning about our responsibilities.

 A determination that each of us here will do all we can to ensure that we neither contribute to nor ignore offensive, harassing or illegal behavior

THIS TRAINING WILL PROVIDE . . .

 An understanding of what creates a hostile environment relative to harassment.

 An understanding of the legal definition of harassment.

 Clear explanations of how harassment harms the object, the harasser and the organization.

 An outline of the appropriate method for responding to an incident of harassment.  Guidelines for preventing harassing behavior.

HARD QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

WHAT IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT?



Sexual Harassment Includes:

•

ABUSE

•

COERCION

•

EXPLOITATION

•

HARASSMENT

ANSWERS



SEXUAL ABUSE

Sexual abuse is sexual molestation of any person, including any sexual involvement or sexual contact with a person who is a minor or who is legally incompetent.



SEXUAL COERCION

Sexual coercion is the use of force – physical, emotional or supervisory – to gain sexual gratification.



SEXUAL EXPLOITATION

Sexual exploitation is the development of, or the attempt to develop, a sexual relationship between a person, employee, or volunteer and a person with whom he or she has an authoritative relationship –

whether or not there is apparent

consent from the individual.

WHAT IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT?



SEXUAL HARASSMENT . . .

• is

unwelcome.

• is personally

offensive.

•

debilitates

the membership and its morale.

•

interferes

with the ministerial or employment relationship.

BEHAVIORS THAT CONSTITUTE SEXUAL HARASSMENT

 Sexually harassing behaviors may include but are not limited to the following: •

Unwanted

verbal harassment and/or abuse of a sexual or gender-related nature; •

Pressure

for sexual activity; • •

Repeated

remarks with sexually demeaning implications;

Unwelcome

touching;

BEHAVIORS THAT CONSTITUTE SEXUAL HARASSMENT

 Sexually harassing behaviors may include but are not limited to the following: •

Suggesting

church; or

demanding

sexual involvement accompanied by implied of explicit threats concerning employment, honors, programs, or activities available at - or related to - the •

Participating

in verbal or physical behavior to which a person deems it necessary to succumb in order to maintain church or civic stature or personal safety; •

Displaying

objects or pictures that are sexually suggestive of offensive;

BEHAVIORS THAT CONSTITUTE SEXUAL HARASSMENT

 Sexually harassing behaviors may include but are not limited to the following: •

Inviting

others attend inappropriate social activities; •

Giving

inappropriate gifts; •

Using

inappropriate reasons for questionable conduct and behavior; •

Discussing

your own personal conduct during a business conversation.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT A PERSISTANT AND COSTLY PROBLEM

$ The EEOC receives approximately 15,000 claims of harassment each year.

$ Approximately

20% -30%

of charges in a given year are settled or resolved with monetary benefits going to the charging party.

$ The monetary value of benefits received by charging parties is in the multiple millions.

THINK ABOUT DOLLARS AND CENTS . . . AND SENSE!

$ Risk management and the enormous cost of sexual harassment claims and litigation $

It’s Personal!

$

The Problem of Personal Liability

$ Defamation $ Negligence $ Assault and Battery $ Invasion of Privacy $ Misrepresentation $ Emotional Distress

SELF-EXAMINATION IDENTIFYING ATTITUDES AND PERCEPTIONS

IN OUR SOCIETY . . .

We are all a product of our environment. The things that influence us may desensitize us to things that may be offensive to others

AVOID DUAL RELATIONSHIPS

CIRCLES OF RELATIONSHIP

• Everyone to whom you

relate professionally

• People with whom you

share social events

• People you enjoy being with but on whom you

do not depend emotionally

• Those with whom you

share intimate information

and whom you

trust absolutely

• Those with whom you are

intimate

and

mutually interdependent

THE RULES

THE EEOC DEFINITION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT

 The basic definition of sexual harassment comes from the United Stated Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC):

“Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment when submission to or rejection of 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.”

KEY POINTS . . .

 Unwelcome sexual advances  Requests for sexual favors  Other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature  Creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment

THE LAW

TWO TYPES OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT



“Quid Pro Quo”



Hostile Environment

“QUID PRO QUO” HARASSMENT



“Quid Pro Quo”

• “This for That” • Exchange of position or • assignment, etc., for sexual favors Can be a one-time event 

Can be a threat of tangible loss that goes unfulfilled

HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT HARASSMENT



Hostile Environment

• Abusive, repetitive and intimidating • Part of an overall pattern that affects a person’s performance •

Typically not

a one-time event

THE U. S. SUPREME COURT ON

• • • •

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

“Burlington Industries v. Ellerth” “Faragher v. City of Boca Raton”

The Supreme Court found that these two cases shared a large common denominator: • The notion that an organization can be held responsible for its employees’ illegal behaviors – despite not having the explicit knowledge that the bad behavior was occurring The Court stated that

act of the employer.” “a tangible employment action taken by a supervisor becomes for Title VII purposes, the

The employer can be liable regardless of whether the employer knew or should have known or approved of the actions.

THE U. S. SUPREME COURT ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT

 When no tangible employment action has been taken a defending employer may assert a

two prong affirmative defense

that:

(1)

the

EMPLOYER

exercised reasonable care to prevent and correct promptly any sexual harassing behavior;

and

,

(2)

the

EMPLOYEE

advantage of any preventative or corrective opportunities provided by the employer or to avoid harm otherwise.

unreasonably failed to take

DC HUMAN RIGHTS ACT

DC Human Rights Act is intended to end discrimination in the District of Columbia based on race, color, religion. national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, familial status, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, disability, source of income, and place of residence or business.

DC HUMAN RIGHTS ACT

PROHIBITED ACTS OF DISCRIMINATION Every individual shall have an equal opportunity to participate fully in the economic, cultural and intellectual life of the District and to have an equal opportunity to participate in all aspects of life, including, but not limited to, in employment, in places of public accommodation, resort or amusement, in educational institutions, in public service, and in housing and commercial space accommodations.

DC HUMAN RIGHTS ACT

Protected Areas of Discrimination. Employment Housing and Commercial Space Public Accommodations Educational Institutions

DC HUMAN RIGHTS ACT

 

By an employer - To fail or refuse to hire, or to discharge, any individual; or otherwise to discriminate against any individual, with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment Accommodation for religious observance - It shall further be an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employer to refuse to make a reasonable accommodation for an employee’s religious observance by permitting the employee to make up work time lost due to such observance

FINAL IDEAS AND THOUGHTS . . .

WHAT ARE THE PROBLEMS ?



Pedophile bishops, clergy, lay leaders



Sexual harassment of church employees



Abuse of clergy relationship



Impropriate clergy relationships



Hostile Environment



Religious intolerance

THANK YOU