| Effective Date: | December 7, 2000 | Adoption Date: | December 1982 |
|
| Approved by: | President Peter Likins | Revision Dates: | April 1991 | |
| July 1998 | ||||
| December 2000 |
Contact:
Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office
The University of Arizona (University) prohibits unlawful
discrimination, including harassment, on the basis of race, color, religion,
sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran’s status, or sexual
orientation. Sexual harassment is
a form of sex discrimination that is specifically prohibited by this policy.
The University’s Sexual Harassment Policy is based on the provisions
of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Education Amendments of
1972, and other applicable laws that prohibit discrimination because of sex.
The
University is committed to creating and maintaining an environment free of
sexual harassment. Every member
of the University community should be aware that the University does not
tolerate sexual harassment and that both law and University policy prohibit
such behavior. This policy
prohibits sexual harassment by University employees, students, contractors and
agents of the University, and by anyone participating in a University
sponsored activity. The
University will take prompt and appropriate action to prevent, correct, and if
necessary, discipline behavior that violates this policy.
All University employees are responsible for participating in the
creation of a campus environment free from sexual harassment.
Unwelcome sexual advances, unwelcome requests for sexual
favors, and other unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature
constitute sexual harassment when:
·
Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or
implicitly a term or condition of an individual's employment, education, or
participation in a University sponsored activity; or
·
Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual
is used as the basis for employment decisions, education decisions, or other
decisions affecting an individual's participation in a University activity; or
·
Such conduct
has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's
work performance, education, or participation in a University sponsored
activity or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work or
educational environment.
In
determining whether alleged conduct constitutes sexual harassment, the Equal
Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office will look at the record as a whole
and the totality of the circumstances, such as the nature of the sexual
conduct and the context in which the alleged incidents occurred.
The legality of a particular action will be determined from the facts,
on a case-by-case basis.
An
individual who believes he/she has been subjected to sexual harassment should
report the harassment immediately so the University can take prompt action.
·
For all incidents of sexual harassment EXCEPT those in
which both parties are students, contact the Equal Opportunity and
Affirmative Action Office for information on resolution of sexual harassment
concerns, including complaint options and procedures. The procedures for filing complaints are also addressed in
the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative
Action Office Internal Procedures for Investigating Complaints and Conducting
Administrative Reviews publication that
is available from the office or on
the web at http://w3.arizona.edu/~affirm/home.html. The Equal Opportunity and
Affirmative Action Office is located at:
Phone: (520) 621-9449, TTY (520) 626-6768
·
If BOTH the alleged harasser and victim of sexual
harassment are students, contact the Dean of Students Office. The Associate
Dean of Students for Judicial Affairs is located at:
University
employees and students have the right to file a complaint with an agency
outside the University and may file the same complaint concurrently with the
University’s Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office.
A complaint filed with an external agency will neither delay nor stop
the University’s investigation concerning the same or similar events.
The external agencies that address complaints of unlawful
discrimination, including sexual harassment, are:
Arizona Civil Rights Division -
Office of the Arizona Attorney General
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Office of Civil Rights, Region VIII - U.S. Department of Education
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs
There
are deadlines for filing a complaint with the University’s Equal Opportunity
and Affirmative Action Office and with outside
agencies. The specific
deadlines are available by:
·
Visiting the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office
website at
http://w3.arizona.edu/~affirm/home.html;
·
Contacting the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action
Office; or
·
Contacting the outside agencies themselves.
Note:
Filing a complaint with the Equal
Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office does NOT
stop the deadline for filing with
an outside agency.
Employees
or agents of the University who (a) supervise other employees, contractors, or
agents; (b) teach or advise
students; or (c) have management authority related to a University sponsored
activity, student program, or activity are required to:
·
Engage in appropriate measures to prevent violations of this
policy; and
·
Promptly notify the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action
Office after being informed of or having a reasonable basis to suspect a
policy violation. If both parties
involved are students, the Dean of Students must be notified.
Supervisors
and managers shall not take disciplinary or contract action or remove a person
from a University sponsored activity for an alleged policy violation prior to
consultation with the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office.
In situations where a supervisor reasonably believes there is imminent
danger of serious bodily harm and is unable to reach a member of the Equal
Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office, the supervisor should take
immediate and appropriate action, including separating the complainant and the
alleged harasser and/or notifying law enforcement.
Such action shall be only temporary until the supervisor can contact
the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office. Additionally, any action taken may not disadvantage the
complaining party. In instances
where a supervisor has taken independent action, the supervisor shall notify
the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office as soon as possible after
taking such action.
When
an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office investigation finds a
policy violation, the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office will
issue recommendations for action to the appropriate organizational unit
administrator. If the unit
administrator unduly delays or refuses to take appropriate action, the Equal
Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office will refer the matter to the Senior
Vice President for Business Affairs, the Provost and Senior Vice President for
Academic Affairs, or the President.
The
recommendations issued by the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office
upon finding a policy violation will be designed to correct the situation and
prevent future violations. These
recommendations may include any of the sanctions set out at Arizona Board of
Regents’ Policies 5-304, 5-308, and/or any of the following:
·
For employees, counseling, education,
and/or adverse administrative action, up to and including termination of
employment;
·
For students, counseling, education,
and/or adverse administrative action, up to and including dismissal from the
University;
·
For other agents of the University, appropriate action, up to and including termination of
the agency relationship; and
·
For participants in a University sponsored activity,
appropriate action, up to and including removal from that activity.
An
individual facing disciplinary action based on a policy violation may utilize
all applicable processes offered under the Classified
Staff Human Resources Policy Manual, University
Handbook for Appointed Personnel, Student
Code of Conduct, Arizona Board of
Regents’ Policy Manual, or any other applicable process.
Confidentiality
Employees
of the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office and Dean of Students
Office and responsible administrators receiving reports of sexual harassment
shall maintain confidentiality of information received, except where
disclosure is required by law or is necessary to facilitate legitimate
University processes, including the investigation and resolution of sexual
harassment allegations.
All
members of the University community may contact the Equal Opportunity and
Affirmative Action Office at any time to ask questions about sexual harassment
or complaint procedures without disclosing their names and without filing a
complaint. However,
because of the inherent difficulty in investigating and resolving allegations
from unknown persons, individuals are discouraged from making anonymous
complaints of sexual harassment.
Although anonymous complaints are discouraged, the University
will reasonably respond to all allegations of sexual harassment.
In order to determine the appropriate response to an anonymous
allegation, the University will weigh the following factors:
·
The source and nature of the
information;
·
The seriousness of the alleged
incident;
·
The specificity of the information;
·
The objectivity and credibility of
the source of the report;
·
Whether any individuals can be
identified who were subjected to the alleged harassment; and
·
Whether those individuals want to
pursue the matter.
If
based on these factors it is reasonable for the University to investigate the
matter, the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Office will conduct an
investigation and recommend appropriate action to address substantiated
allegations. However,
a reasonable response would not include disciplinary action against an alleged
harasser if an accuser insists that his or her name not be revealed, if there
is insufficient corroborating evidence, and if the alleged harasser could not
respond to the charges of sexual harassment without knowing the name of the
accuser.
The law prohibits retaliation
against individuals who engage in protected activity related to sexual
harassment. An individual is
protected from retaliation when he/she:
·
Files a sexual harassment complaint or testifies, assists, or
participates in any manner in an investigation or other proceeding related to
such a complaint; or
·
Opposes conduct reasonably believed to constitute sexual
harassment to one’s self or to others, even if the individual has not filed
a sexual harassment complaint and is not involved in the investigation of such
a complaint.
Essentially, any adverse action
that is reasonably likely to deter a complaining party or others from engaging
in protected activity is prohibited. Allegations
of retaliation will be investigated, and if substantiated, will result in
appropriate disciplinary action.
Because
of the nature of sexual harassment, allegations often cannot be substantiated
by direct evidence other than the complaining party’s own statement.
Lack of corroborating evidence should not discourage individuals from
seeking relief under this policy. No
action will be taken against an individual who makes a good faith allegation
of sexual harassment, even if after investigation the allegation is not
substantiated. However,
allegations or statements made in the course of an investigation or
enforcement procedure found to be intentionally dishonest or made with willful
disregard for the truth may subject the individual to disciplinary action.
RELATED PROVISIONS
Affiliated Entities
University employees
and students sometimes work or study at the worksite or program of another
organization affiliated with the University.
When a policy violation is alleged by or against University employees
or students in those circumstances, the complaint shall be handled as provided
in the affiliation agreement between the University and the other entity.
In the absence of an affiliation agreement or a provision addressing
sexual harassment allegations, the University may, in its discretion, choose
to:
·
Conduct its own investigation;
·
Conduct a joint investigation with
the affiliated entity;
·
Defer to the findings of an
investigation by the affiliated entity where the University has reviewed the
investigation process and is satisfied that it was fairly conducted; or
·
Use the investigation and findings of the affiliated entity
as a basis for further investigation.