The Kenton County Workplace Harassment Policy is part of the Personnel Policy, also known as the Employee Handbook.

The Kenton County Fiscal Court seeks to eliminate and prevent harassment as well as to alleviate any effects such harassment may have on the working condition of an employee. All such harassment is forbidden. Harassment includes unsolicited remarks, gestures or physical contact, display or circulation of written materials or pictures derogatory towards either gender or toward racial, ethnic, age or religious groups, or basing personnel decisions on an employee’s response to such harassment. Harassment may be in the form of oral comments, written correspondence including electronic communications (i.e. e-mails, faxes, etc.), physical/non-verbal gestures or physical contact. The Fiscal Court regards workplace harassment as a serious transgression.

The policy of the Kenton County Fiscal Court is that every employee has a fundamental right to be free of such harassment. In response to formal reports of harassment, the Human Resource Director will seek to immediately protect all parties involved from retaliation, false accusations, or future harassment and where indicated, will take prompt and adequate remedial measures.

Should an issue of harassment be raised, all related matters will be kept confidential to the greatest extent possible throughout the investigation, counseling and disciplinary stages. Any supervisor receiving notice of harassment shall notify the Human Resource Director who shall cause an immediate investigation and ensure that the charge is resolved appropriately.

Sexual advances, request for sexual favors, or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment when:

Sexual harassment includes unsolicited remarks, gestures or physical contact, display or circulation of written material or pictures derogatory towards either gender or basing personnel decisions on an employee’s response to such harassment. Harassment may be in the form of oral comments, written correspondence including electronic communications (i.e. e-mails, faxes, etc.), physical/non-verbal gestures or physical contact.

Any employee who feels harassed or is aware of harassment of another employee is urged to report this to an immediate supervisor, or to the Human Resource Director. Reports may be informal or formal. Formal reports shall include a written statement.

Written reports concerning harassment will be forwarded to the Human Resource Director unless there is an allegation against that person, and if so, then written reports will be forwarded to the Deputy Judge/Executive. This procedure will apply to written statements received from reporting employees or written records made by supervisory employees. Whenever supervisory employees become aware of allegations of harassment, they will make a written record of the allegations and will forward the record to the Human Resource Director.

The Human Resource Director shall cause an investigation into all claims of harassment. The first pre-investigation step shall be to inquire of all persons reporting as to whether the record now includes all allegations of harassment. The investigation will be conducted promptly on a priority basis. The investigation will be directed at ascertaining the facts concerning the allegations. If, in the course of investigation, evidence of harassment involving other employees is found, the Human Resource Director shall initiate separate investigations. The investigator shall cause the person reported to have harassed an employee to be advised of the allegations and to afford such person an opportunity to reply orally or in writing. The employee shall also be advised that any retaliatory conduct will be subject to disciplinary action regardless of allegations of harassment. The result of the investigation shall be reduced to writing. A finding shall be made that there is or is not reasonable cause for disciplinary action.

A report, which finds reasonable cause for disciplinary action, shall be forwarded to the Human Resource Director, who will then place a copy in the personnel file of any employee subject to discipline. The employee may have placed in the personnel file a statement of rebuttal.

If action is taken, against an individual or individuals during or after a complaint of harassment or the subsequent investigation of harassment, that constitutes retaliation, the perpetrator of the retaliation shall be subject to disciplinary action including but not limited to immediate termination.

Nothing in this section shall limit the authority of the Department to modify policies or practices to correct any appearance of sexual harassment without finding reasonable cause for disciplinary action or taking any disciplinary action.

In order to prevent and discourage occurrences of workplace harassment, the Fiscal Court will train all of its employees on workplace harassment. All supervisory employees will be trained or receive a refresher course once every two (2) years. All non-supervisory employees will be trained or receive a refresher course once every five (5) years.