Policy Would Get Tough On Harassment
After an investigation into allegations he had sexually harassed a former employee, Gov. Mike Lowry said he wanted Washington to lead the nation in workplace harassment prevention.
He asked Personnel Director Dennis Karras to develop a strong policy on the subject. Karras has completed his work and this week delivered the proposed new policy to Lowry.
The proposed policy creates a procedure for filing a formal complaint against a governor. It also prohibits supervisors from harassing employees in any way.
The policy, developed by Karras and four other state agency directors, is an “evolutionary change,” Karras said Thursday. “You don’t find too many other policies that (address) harassment beyond sexual harassment.”
Lowry spokesman Jordan Dey said the governor has reviewed the policy and is pleased with the panel’s work. But Dey said he didn’t know when the policy would take effect.
The policy is the result of a two-month investigation into allegations of sexual harassment against the governor by former deputy press aide Susanne Albright.
Seattle attorney Mary Alice Theiler, who investigated Albright’s accusations, said in her March 22 report that while a jury likely would not find the governor guilty of sexual harassment, his behavior was offensive to Albright.
Lowry, who asked Karras to develop the new policy, has said he did nothing wrong and that if he had offended anyone, he was sorry.
By reaching beyond sexual harassment, the policy presents some possible complications, Karras said. “The risk comes in defining what harassment is beyond sexual harassment,” he said.
Scenarios could include someone in the office spreading demeaning information about another employee; supervisors who withhold training or equipment from employees to prevent them from doing their work properly; or supervisors who put an employee down in group sessions, he said.
Under the new policy, people could file a written complaint with the staff director or legal counsel in the governor’s office, the state Human Rights Commission or the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
A separate procedure is created for complaints about a governor’s behavior.
If it is a sexual harassment accusation, the person complaining could bypass any other procedure and file with the HRC or the EEOC or pursue a lawsuit.
If the complaint is about another type of harassment, it would be turned over to the state Personnel Resources Board, the state agency that deals with personnel issues.
Although members of the board are appointed by the governor, Karras said their jobs are not political patronage positions. Board members, who serve sixyear, overlapping terms are not all appointed by the same governor and may be dismissed only for cause, which offers additional protections to complainants, Karras said.
Other plans include additional sexual-harassment training for Lowry and members of his cabinet and development of sexual harassment policies for all other state agencies.
Lowry and his staff received sexual-harassment training last year after a Washington State Patrol fingerprint technician alleged the governor touched her in a sexual way. An investigation by the attorney general failed to reach a conclusion about what happened.