Effective April 28, 2018, the Department of the Interior has established a comprehensive anti-harassment program - Personnel Bulletin 18-01 Prevention and Elimination of Harassing Conduct.
The Department of Interior is committed to providing a work environment free of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetic information (including family medical history), status as a parent, marital status, or political affiliation, and free from illegal retaliation. The Department will not tolerate offensive sexual or non-sexual harassing behavior against any Department employee, intern, volunteer, contractor or other non-Federal employee, visitor, or other member of the public. The Department also will not tolerate adverse treatment of employees because they report harassing conduct or provide information related to such complaints.
The BSEE fully supports this policy and reaffirms its commitment to maintaining a workplace free from harassing conduct. To learn more about Personnel Bulletin 18-01, please visit the US DOI page, Prevention and Elimination of Harassing Conduct, by clicking here.
The primary goals of the policy are to:
- Provide a work environment free from harassment by ensuring that appropriate officials are notified of, and have the opportunity to promptly correct, harassing conduct;
- Communicate clearly that the Department will not tolerate sexual or non-sexual harassing behavior; and
- Address harassing conduct and hold employees accountable at the earliest possible stage, before the conduct becomes “severe or pervasive,” i.e., harassment within the meaning of anti-discrimination law.
The policy achieves these goals by:
- Defining unacceptable conduct that violates the policy;
- Outlining the rights and responsibilities of employees, supervisors, and managers; and
- Establishing reporting procedures and accountability measures.