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Panel releases model anti-harassment policy for campaigns

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Illinois

* The Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel released its full report today. You can read some newspaper coverage here and here.

Press release excerpt…

The Illinois Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access (AHEA) Panel today released its report that outlines recommendations for political party leaders and campaigns to adopt in order to change the culture and behaviors that have allowed sexual harassment to pervade our political system and stunt the advancement of women for decades.

A non-partisan organization led by State Comptroller Susana A. Mendoza, State Sen. Melinda Bush (31s t District, Grayslake) and State Rep. Carol Ammons (103r d District, Champaign), the Panel sent its report to Democratic, Green, Libertarian, and Republican party leaders at the state and county level as well as all statewide and state-level campaigns registered with the State Board of Elections. The Panel is asking them to adopt the tenets of the report and offering to meet with leaders to provide feedback, guidance and input on its recommendations as well as next steps. The panel has asked county chairs to share the report with other county and municipal campaigns and party leaders.

* The full report is pretty big, so we’re going to look at it in chunks today. Let’s start with some excerpts from the panel’s model anti-harassment policy for campaigns…

We, [Name of Campaign], are committed to creating a respectful and safe working environment for every individual that works on this campaign, including campaign staff, independent contractors, volunteers, vendors, consultants, fundraisers, interns, and candidates (“Campaign Workers”). [Name of Campaign] does not tolerate harassment, bullying, or discrimination of any kind, in the workplace or in work-related situations. To achieve an environment that is free of harassment, bullying, and discrimination, it is essential that Campaign Workers feel comfortable raising complaints about harassment or other misconduct when they see or experience it. Therefore, [Name of Campaign] strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against a Campaign Worker who reports or assists in reporting a concern regarding a violation of this Policy.

I. Who is Covered
This Policy applies to all individuals that work on this campaign, including but not limited to candidates, campaign staff, independent contractors, volunteers, vendors, consultants, and fundraisers. […]

Managers, supervisors, and any other individuals with supervisory authority must report suspected violations of this Policy when they become aware of such a violation. […]

III. Prohibition Against Harassment
This Policy prohibits harassment. For the purposes of this Policy, harassment is conduct that creates a disrespectful, intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive environment for a Campaign Worker based on that Campaign Worker’s protected status. […]

While not an exhaustive list, harassment can include the following types of conduct:

● Derogatory or insensitive jokes, comments, or pranks;
● Sharing the derogatory or insensitive jokes, comments, or pranks from others;
● Use of slurs or epithets;
● Inappropriate familiarity, invasive questions about personal lives or relationships;
● Unwelcome sexual or romantic advances or invitations (including asking a Campaign Worker out more than once if the Campaign Worker declines the first invitation);
● Displaying or sharing images such as posters, videos, photos, cartoons, screensavers, emails, or drawings that are derogatory or sexual;
● Comments about appearance, or other personal or physical characteristics, such as sexually charged comments or comments on someone’s physical disability;
● Comments about the appearance, or other personal or physical characteristics, even if it is about other people; or
● Unwanted bodily contact such as groping or massaging, blocking normal movement, unnecessary touching, or physically interfering with the work of another individual.

IV. Prohibition Against Bullying
This Policy prohibits bullying. Bullying is repeated behavior that a reasonable Campaign Worker would find disrespectful, intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating, or offensive, regardless of whether the conduct is based on a Campaign Worker’s protected status.

While this is not an exhaustive list, bullying behavior can appear as the following:

● Excessive monitoring or micromanaging of a Campaign Worker;
● Deliberately excluding a Campaign Worker or isolating him or her from work-related activities that he or she would normally be included in;
● Singling out a Campaign Worker for unfavorable work assignments or demands;
● Regularly teasing or making a Campaign Worker the brunt of pranks or practical jokes;
● Publicly reprimanding, embarrassing, or shouting at a Campaign Worker; […]

VI. Role of Bystanders
Bystanders should speak up if they see or hear something that they believe violates the Policy, or something that they think is inappropriate, including suspected instances of retaliation. Bystanders are encouraged to intervene on the spot when they see inappropriate behavior unless doing so would risk the bystander’s physical safety. If bystanders do not believe that they can safely intervene – for example, if the offender is threatening violence – bystanders are expected to call law enforcement. […]

VII. Prohibition Against Retaliation
[Name of the Campaign] strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against a Campaign Worker, who reports or assists in reporting a concern regarding a violation of this Policy. Retaliation against a Campaign Worker is a violation of this Policy and the retaliating individual will be subject to discipline under this Policy. […]

VIII. Procedures for Reporting a Violation of the Policy
If you suspect harassment, bullying, discrimination, or retaliation has occurred, you are encouraged (and supervisors are required) to promptly provide a written or oral complaint internally to your immediate supervisor, the Campaign Manager, or [another option internal to the campaign]. In addition or alternatively, you may also report the conduct to the Independent Body of the State Party which has been formed to fairly and neutrally investigate these claims from campaigns that are affiliated with the Party. […]

IX. Possible Outcomes from Violations
The Independent Body of the State Party is committed to investigations that have just and fair outcomes. If an investigation reveals that a violation of this Policy occurred, the offender will be disciplined, but the punishment will be proportional to the violation, with repeat offenses receiving increasing discipline. The Independent Body of the State Party will prepare and publish a matrix of the possible outcomes that will be imposed based on a range of behaviors and repeat offenses.

Discuss.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:14 am

Comments

“The Independent Body of the State Party” appears to be the recommended hammer. Will wait to see the details.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:30 am
Some one should send this to Jerry Long./s

Comment by G'Kar Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:36 am
Making campaigns behave like corporate entities feels strange. It’s probably necessary and overdue, but it still makes me a little sad to see. I started working in campaign offices when I was 16 and they are amazing and energetic places. All the skills needed for any kind of start-up business apply to campaigns. It’s one of the very few places where young people are given enormous responsibility. The training wheels come off very early for campaign staff.

And yet, people (OK, men) continue to behave badly. We need rules and guidelines because too many of us haven’t learned how to behave appropriately. Just as many fraternities had to be sued or closed to change cultures, I’m sad that these problems have persisted for so long that it’s come to this.

I’m happy that this will make campaigns a better work place for the many talented women who’ve been treated so poorly. My preference would have been for us men to recognize this decades ago and change. But since that hasn’t happened, this is the result.

I think, from what I’ve seen so far, the commission got this mostly right.

Comment by 47th Ward Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:36 am
Rich, I just want to say “thanks” for breaking this down and giving the report the space and analysis it deserves. Truly appreciated and this is the kind of thing that brought me to this blog and keeps me here.

Comment by JoanP Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:47 am
There’s a whole lot here in all these posts.

To state the obvious, it being Sept. 26, I’m guessing this isn’t going to get a hard look by political types of any stripes until sometime after the election.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:49 am
==Making campaigns behave like corporate entities feels strange.==

Agree and agree that change is necessary to create a professional working environment everywhere and all the time for all workers.

That said, can you treat a campaign the same as a corporate entity without violating the 1st amendment?

Do we currently regulate private employers in the same manner? If not, why not?

Also, won’t all this regulation just empower wealthy and sophisticated candidates and organizations who have the resources to comply with these new rules and deter or worse, knock out, good but underfunded and unsophisticated candidates?

The expense and regulatory burden proposed hear should spur a discussion of publicly funding campaigns.

Comment by Jane Fonda Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:53 am
===Do we currently regulate private employers in the same manner===

This is voluntary and would be a condition of receiving campaign finance support from party organizations. If a campaign opts out, fine, but then they can’t get party $$.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:56 am
===Do we currently regulate private employers in the same manner===

This is voluntary and would be a condition of receiving campaign finance support from party organizations. If a campaign opts out, fine, but then they can’t get party $$.

Comment by 47th Ward Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:56 am
==If a campaign opts out, fine, but then they can’t get party $$.==

What is party $$?

Comment by Jane Fonda Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 9:59 am
===What is party $$?===

You must be new here, lol.

Comment by 47th Ward Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 10:00 am
==You must be new here, lol.==

Sorry, does party money include leadership PACs, local committees that use a Party name, PACs and campaign committees that only support candidates from one party. Does it apply to new parties and local, “non-partisan” parties, etc. Where does it start and where does it stop? How do we prevent candidates from taking party $$ using pass through entities?

Comment by Jane Fonda Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 10:06 am
–Orwellian.–

LOL, it’s been a while since I’ve read it, but I don’t believe the rules of Oceania were voluntary and without any force of law.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 10:34 am
I think this is really exciting and long overdue. Let’s use this as an opportunity to get something tangible done in our campaigns and politics. There’s so much political divisiveness among the parties, but this is something we can and should rally around.

Comment by Shytown Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 10:41 am
Guess my mom can’t tell the ‘Aristocrats’ joke at her next party meeting?

Comment by zatoichi Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 10:42 am
== anti-harassment policy for campaigns ==

It’s certainly not my policy to harass campaigns even they harass my land line phone.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Sep 26, 18 @ 12:56 pm