Human Resources Policies

POLICY: Discrimination or Harassment Complaint Resolution Procedure
Policy Number: HR-4
Effective Date: July 2002
Revisions: June 2002, July 2000, April 1999, January 1994
Responsible Officer: Associate Dean, Planning and Operations

PURPOSE:
This policy was established to provide methods for addressing and resolving complaints of unlawful discrimination and/or harassment.

I. POLICY:
In any sizable organization such as the College of Medicine, friction or misunderstandings may arise because of the wide variety of circumstances under which individuals interact. It is, therefore, imperative that mechanisms and resources be provided for individuals to discuss problems so that corrections and adjustments can be made where appropriate. To that end, the procedures outlined below provide methods for addressing and resolving complaints of unlawful discrimination and/or harassment.

II. ELIGIBILITY:
This policy applies to all employees, faculty and students.

III. EXCEPTIONS:
Any individual that wishes to file a College of Medicine discrimination complaint shall have it considered in accordance with the procedures set forth in this policy, with the following exception:

A. Students who are filing a complaint against another student are subject to the judicial procedures set forth in the student handbook.

IV. PROCEDURES:

A. FILING A COMPLAINT
1. A complaint under this Policy must be made in writing, signed by the complainant, and submitted to the Senior Associate Vice President for Equality and Disability within 30 days after the alleged violation. The complaint must include a detailed statement of the known facts out of which the complaint arises, a request for specific relief, and the names and contact information for any witnesses to the incidents mentioned in the complaint.

2. Where a complaint is not filed in a timely way, the Senior Associate Vice President may determine that special circumstances exist that excuse the delay, and consider the complaint as timely filed. In instances involving a student complaint against a faculty member charging harassing/discriminating behavior which occurred in the context of a subordinate-supervisory academic relationship (e.g. teaching, advising, thesis or dissertation supervision or coaching), the time period may be extended until 30 days after the student is no longer under the faculty member's supervision.

B. VOLUNTARY MEDIATION PROCESS PROCEDURE
1. After receipt of the complaint, the initial consultation and prior to beginning an investigation, the Senior Associate Vice President will advise the complainant that voluntary mediation or conciliation of a complaint is available should the complainant so desire. If the complainant chooses to pursue this course, and the person charged with discrimination agrees, the Senior Associate Vice President shall suspend the formal complaint procedure for up to 60 days (which can be extended with the written consent of all parties) to permit mediation to take place.

2. The Senior Associate Vice President for Equality and Disability may appoint a mediator or may serve as mediator. At any time, any of the parties to the complaint, or the person serving as mediator may terminate mediation efforts through notice to the Senior Associate Vice President. Upon receipt of such notification, the Senior Associate Vice President will notify all of the parties and may proceed with the formal investigation, if such a step is deemed warranted.

3. If the complaint is successfully mediated, the Senior Associate Vice President will prepare a Mediation Agreement, describing the terms agreed upon by both parties. The complaining party and the charged party will be expected to read and sign the Mediation Agreement, which will state that both parties agree that the dispute is fully and finally resolved, subject to the parties' compliance with any stipulated commitments.

4. In the event that either party fails to comply with the commitments or conditions contained in the Mediation Agreement, the other party may seek the intervention of the Senior Associate Vice President, who may contact the party's supervisor to assist with enforcement, or institute an
investigation of the underlying complaint.

C. MEDIATION RECORD
The Office of Equality and Disability will not retain any written record of the mediation process except the original complaint and the Mediation Agreement. The Mediation Agreement may be used as evidence in subsequent investigations and hearings related to similar charges of discrimination/harassment filed against the charged party. The charged party will be informed of this fact before signing the Mediation Agreement. The Office of Equality and Disability will discard all other documents and notes as soon as the mediation process has been concluded.

D. UNSUCCESSFUL MEDIATION
If either party is dissatisfied with the outcome of the mediation process, or if either party decides to terminate the mediation process, the Senior Associate Vice President will initiate a formal investigation of the original allegations. The investigation and mediation processes will be separate and distinct from one another and statements made, or records submitted, in the mediation process, other than the original statement of complaint and the Mediation Agreement, will not automatically be introduced into the investigation process.

E. INVESTIGATION
1. After the initial consultation, the Senior Associate Vice President will determine whether the conduct complained of falls within the scope of this Policy and, if voluntary mediation is refused, will conduct a confidential investigation. The investigation will be initiated as soon as possible, consistent with resource availability, and will afford both the complainant and the accused an opportunity to be heard.

2. An accused individual will be notified of the complaint allegations and the identity of the complainant unless disclosure of the complainant's identity is deemed unnecessary to afford the accused victim a fair opportunity to respond to the allegations.

3. Any person who reports or complains; participates in an inquiry or investigation; or is accused of discrimination/harassment, will have the right to be accompanied by an individual of his/her choice from within the College of Medicine community, who will be permitted to attend, but not otherwise participate in, the proceedings.

4. The supervisor will be required to cooperate fully with the Office of Equality and Disability in the investigation and resolution of complaints under this policy.

F. DETERMINATIONS
1. The outcome of an investigation may be a finding that the allegations are unwarranted or could not be substantiated; a negotiated settlement; or a finding that the allegations are substantiated and, if so, recommendations to the appropriate College of Medicine official regarding corrective or disciplinary action. The standard of proof for administrative proceedings is that of a "preponderance of evidence" - that is, evidence which, as a whole, shows that the fact sought to be proved is more probable than not.

2. The Senior Associate Vice President will communicate the final disposition of the complaint to all parties. The recommended sanctions will be formally imposed by the appropriate senior College of Medicine official.

G. SANCTIONS
Sanctions imposed on those individuals who have been found to be in violation of the College of Medicine's discrimination/harassment policies shall be commensurate with the frequency and severity of the conduct and adequate and sufficient to demonstrate the College of Medicine's commitment to taking strong and effective measures to both remedy and prevent the conduct. The sanctions may involve, among others, any of the following, singularly or in combination: a requirement not to repeat or continue the discriminatory, harassing conduct; an oral or written reprimand; denial of a merit pay increase; denial of promotion; and reassignment, suspension or separation from the College of Medicine. Discipline will be enforced against any employee engaging in illegal discrimination/harassment and against any supervisory personnel who knowingly permit the activity or behavior to continue.

V. FILING AN APPEAL:
A. Either the Complainant or the Charged Party may file an appeal of any decision concerning the resolution of the complaint. An appeal by either party must be made, in writing, to the Senior Associate Dean for Administration and Finance within 15 days of receipt of the notice of the resolution/disciplinary decision.

B. The written appeal must state, in detail, the reason(s) for the appeal and shall address one or more of the following:

1. If the appeal alleges that the findings of the investigator included relevant factual errors or omitted relevant facts, the appeal shall specify each and every factual error and or details of each and every relevant fact which was omitted from the investigation.

2. If the appeal alleges substantive procedural errors, the person appealing shall identify each and every instance of said substantive procedural error.

3. If the appeal alleges relevant or substantive issues or questions concerning interpretation of College of Medicine policy, the person appealing shall state, in detail, the issues/questions supporting this allegation.

4. If the appeal alleges new information or evidence, the person appealing shall specify the reason why this information was not available or provided to the investigator during the course of the investigation, including the reason(s) why the information could not have been provided on a timely basis.

5. If the appeal alleges either that action(s) or inaction of the supervisor in response to the findings of the investigation will not prevent future violations of this policy, the person appealing will specify, in detail, the reason(s) and basis for this belief/allegation. No disciplinary or other action based upon the original complaint findings shall be taken against the alleged offender during the appeal process, although temporary, interim measures may remain in place.

VI. INTERIM ACTIONS DURING AN INVESTIGATION:
In some cases, the alleged conduct specified in a complaint may be such that to protect the complainant or other members of the College of Medicine community, the College of Medicine may, in its discretion, elect to place the alleged offender on administrative leave with pay, or may implement a temporary reassignment. This leave or reassignment will generally remain in effect for the duration of the complaint investigation process.

VII. OTHER INTERNAL OR EXTERNAL RESOLUTION PROCEDURES:
An individual who believes that she/he has been subjected to unlawful discrimination or harassment has the right to file a complaint with an appropriate local, state or federal agency or a court with proper jurisdiction. In the event that a complaint is filed with an external agency or court, or pursued through a different College of Medicine process (e.g. The Grievance/Complaint Resolution Policy, or the Ombudsperson) the College of Medicine reserves the right to determine, in its discretion, whether the College of Medicine's complaint resolution procedures described above should be 1) discontinued; 2) continued separately; or 3) in the case of a complaint under a different College of Medicine process, consolidated with that complaint and resolved through one process. The College of Medicine will make such determination to achieve fairness and consistency in the resolution of complaints and to ensure efficient use of internal administrative resources.

VIII. INVESTIGATOR CONFLICT OF INTEREST:
The complainant and/or the alleged offender might allege that the investigator has a substantial conflict of interest which might impair her/his ability to conduct a fair and impartial investigation of the allegations. In that event, details supporting the alleged conflict of interest must be submitted, in writing, to the Senior Associate Dean for Administration and Finance. These details must be submitted within five (5) business days of the date that the person alleging the conflict has notice of the investigator's identity. The Senior Associate Dean for Administration and Finance will determine whether a conflict may exist and, if so, an alternative investigator will be appointed as expeditiously as possible. In the event that a request is made and the alternate investigator must be appointed, any specific time line provided for in the complaint procedure shall be suspended pending the determination and/or appointment.

IX. CONFIDENTIALITY:
A. The College of Medicine shall protect the confidentiality of the identities of, and statements made by, the parties and witnesses involved in a discrimination/harassment report or complaint to the extent permitted by law and the extent that continued protection does not interfere with the College of Medicine's ability to investigate allegations of misconduct brought to its attention and to take corrective action. In addition, all that participate in any part of the investigation will be expected not to reveal any information, either shared or learned, during the course of these proceedings. Despite these measures, however, the College of Medicine cannot and does not guarantee that parties and witnesses will maintain confidentiality.

B. Confidentiality does not mean that the details of the complaint will be withheld from the charged party, or that the College of Medicine is constrained from divulging the proceedings in appropriate circumstances. For example, the College of Medicine may publicly divulge details of the outcome if one of the parties discloses selective or self-serving portions of the proceedings, or when a lawsuit emerges where the complainant or charged party contests the findings or results of the College of Medicine's investigation.

X. NON-RETALIATION:
Retaliation against an individual who, in good faith, reports, complains about or participates in an investigation of an allegation of discrimination/harassment is prohibited by College of Medicine policy and by federal law.

XI. FALSE ACCUSATIONS:
Anyone who knowingly makes a false accusation of discrimination/harassment will be subject to appropriate sanctions, which may include, but are not limited to, written warning, demotion, transfer, suspension, dismissal, expulsion, or termination.

XII. ANONYMOUS COMPLAINT:
The College of Medicine is not obligated to initiate an investigation or take any action against an individual as the result of an anonymous complaint.

Additional Information: Inquiries regarding this policy can be directed to the Office of Equality and Disability.