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Thursday, September 23, 2010

Sexual Harassment Policy

Please go the the UT web site and read the new proposed policy on harassment. There are places for comments.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Didn't see the sexual harassment policy prominently displayed on the UT website. Do you have a link?

Anonymous said...

David won't be able to talk anymore.

Anonymous said...

Here's the policy as someone sent it to me:

2) Prohibited conduct
Examples of prohibited conduct may include, but are not limited to: offensive
statements, insults, epithets, or jokes; physically threatening behavior directed at
another individual; using any form of communication to insult, demean or
threaten another individual (including email or internet postings such as on
Facebook, etc.); and/or other verbal or physical conduct if any of the above
conduct is based on or directed at an individual’s protected classification, as listed
above. All such harassment is strictly prohibited.
Employees who violate this policy will be subject to discipline up to and
including termination. Students who violate this policy will be subject to
discipline up to and including expulsion.
Harassment prohibited by this policy can occur during working hours and nonworking
hours, including University-sponsored programs, seminars, conferences,
business trips or business related social events, and conduct that occurs directly or
indirectly via telephone or other electronic communication through the internal or
external mail system (including email) and other forms of communication.
Additionally, this policy extends to members of the University community
whether on or off campus. This includes, but is not limited to behaviors which
may occur on professional practice assignments, clinical assignments, while
attending activities as a representative of the University of Toledo, while
representing the University in the community or at a University sanctioned or
DRAFT 3364-50-01 Sexual harassment and other forms of harassment 4
sponsored event. It also includes off-campus activities that are connected to the
educational process of the University.

Anonymous said...

Briefly, how does this differ significantly from the previous sexual harassment policy?

Can anyone with in depth knowledge about this comment here?

Do you have some specific remarks or criticisms?

Also, we can't comment if we can't find the web page. Please post a link. Thanks.

Bloggie said...

The old policy is at http://www.utoledo.edu/policies/administration/diversity/pdfs/3364_50_01.pdf

The old one defines rather clearly what harassment consists of in the way of tangible actions and seems quite reasonable.

The proposed new one--which an anonymous benefactor sent to Bloggie among others--seems vague beyond reason, What, for example, does "offensive" mean in this context? Does it mean that someone did not use a gender neutral pronoun? The meaning seems utterly subjective and therefore inherently prone to abuse. It deals with attributed meanings that may have nothing to do with intent or reality.

An attorney at a national free speech organization looked over this proposed policy this week past and pronounced it "deeply flawed." And he does this sort of thing for a living. This speech code stuff is pure fascism. And it has become fairly obvious that UT has some fascist personalities looking for to rule.

Unfortunately Bloggie cannot find the proposed new policy on the University website either. If someone knows its location, please step in.

Love to all,

Bloggie

Anonymous said...

Mark my words, it is targeted at people who comment on blogs like this or in the IC. "Offensive statements" can be widely interpreted.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for your added input Bloggie.

Perhaps you could get the free speech attorney you mentioned to go on the record with an informal critique - and maybe even organize some formal critique and/or protest with some legal teeth to back it up -- and then get all this out to the Collegian and off-campus media.

Of course you will be labeled a sexist bigot for even questioning any of this - but what else is new?

Obviously there is no place for real sexual harassment in the workplace, at UT or anywhere else -- but this definitely sounds like Big Brother and Big Sister and the Thought Police up to their usual tricks of attempted fascist mind control in the name of "social justice."

I wonder if the sexual harassment policy holds women accountable for any of their own irresponsible conduct (i.e. like foolishly placing themselves in situations where bad things can and often do happen – like ending up drunk, alone and vulnerable among drunken male strangers at parties, clubs or in other obviously precarious and sexually charged situations).

I wonder if the sexual harassment policy holds women accountable for their own covert sexual harassment in the form of supposedly innocent and benign but obviously inappropriate and sexually provocative dress and conduct (like walking around campus with thong panties hanging out and generally dressed like they're competing at some sort of national slut-fest -- or going to ask a professor for a better grade, or a boss for a promotion -- alone, in his office with the door closed and dressed like and acting like a common hooker).

These may be harsh criticisms but they are based on realities anyone can see just by looking around -- and incidents many have experienced first-hand and/or witnessed or heard about from reliable and trustworthy sources.

Call it sexist if you like – but at least have the honesty and integrity to admit sexual harassment is very often a two-way street; and have the moral courage to promote the expectation that women can and should act like responsible adults; and that young women should understand in no uncertain terms that they need to have enough self respect, intelligence and common sense and common decency to act with responsibility and integrity and look out for themselves – as opposed to just being angry, politically correct whiners and victims.

Old fashioned values made all of these issues obvious for men and women alike. In the (post)modern world we apparently need to relearn them all again.

sir lawrence said...

the draft policies website is at
http://www.utoledo.edu/policies/draft_policies/index.html
the harassment policy itself is at
http://www.utoledo.edu/policies/draft_policies/pdfs/Draft_3364-50-01__Sexual_haras.pdf