SEXUAL HARASSMENT COMPLAINT PROCEDURE
GRIEVANCE PROCESS
The District Attorney shall take immediate and appropriate action upon receipt of any grievance that alleges sexual harassment pursuant to this policy. If an employee feels that he or she is subjected to sexual harassment, he or she shall grieve the incident directly to the District Attorney.
Any grievance made to the District Attorney shall be in written form and, at minimum, include the following information:
1. Date(s), time(s) and location(s) of alleged incident(s);
2. Name of the alleged policy violator(s);
3. Detailed description of the alleged incident(s);
4. Name(s) and telephone number(s) of witnesses;
5. Nature of the relationship between the witnesses and the victim; and
6. Original signature of the victim at the end of the report, with the victim’s name printed directly beneath the signature.
INVESTIGATION PROCEDURES
The District Attorney shall conduct an appropriate investigation of each credible complaint. The District Attorney shall keep a physical file and an electronic file of the investigation including the written grievance, any written statements from the person against whom the complaint is made and witnesses, all documentation of verbal communications with the person against whom the complaint is made and witnesses, written notes of interviews, audio and/or video recordings.
After the investigation is complete, the District Attorney shall render a final determination and any corresponding corrective action. The District Attorney shall maintain a copy of the final determination in the employees’ personnel files.
MANDATORY ANNUAL REPORT
The District Attorney shall cause an annual report to be prepared no later than January 10thof each year. The annual report shall contain information from the previous calendar year regarding the office’s compliance with the requirements of the LSA–R.S. 42:341–345, including but not limited to the:
1. Number and percentage of employees who have completed the training requirements;
2. Number of sexual harassment complaints received by the office;
3. Number of complaints that resulted in a finding that sexual harassment had occurred;
4. Number of complaints in which the finding of sexual harassment resulted in discipline or corrective action; and
5. Amount of time it took to resolve each complaint.
MANDATORY ANNUAL TRAINING
All employees of the St. John the Baptist Parish District Attorney shall receive a minimum of one (1) hour mandatory training in “Preventing Sexual Harassment for All Employees”, and when applicable, a minimum of one (1) hour mandatory training in “Preventing Sexual Harassment for Supervisors.”
REPORTING SEXUAL HARRASSMENT
Should you feel like you have been harmed by sexual harassment in the workplace, there are steps you can take to file a harassment claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). In order to successfully file such a claim; however, you have to be able to prove that: a) your employer tried to correct the harassing behavior, and b) the employee responsible for the harassment refused to cease and desist. Thus it is vital that you first report the harassment to the EEOO as well as taking detailed notes of the dates, times, and nature of the incidents.
If attempts to remediate a sexual harassment situation fail, you must file your claim with the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission within 180 days by mail, in person or by calling 800-669-4000.