Workplace issues handled well!

[Zoe Girl]

I am happy with the way a sensitive issue is being handled by my new workplace. Over breaks and days off school we combine 2 schools to do full day care. B is the other site supervisor that i work with. I have a young staff S who worked with B over summer, and we just did thanksgiving break together. She shared with me yesterday that she feels uncomfortable with him. He is her friend on facebook, texts her sometimes, asks a lot about her boyfriend, and apparently recently put his hand on her leg. She feels like she has to answer his texts since he is the boss.

This went up the chain quickly, he was called into a meeting, and I am going to carefully schedule our next break so she works during my shifts. I feel good about how it is being handled, respectful of everyone but also seriously. It is going to be super awkward for awhile, but hopefully he will respect the boundaries of being a supervisor (he was promoted from within in the last year, new role, new standards)

[Tradd]

Does your district not have guidelines that staff should not interact with students on social media? Seems to be a big no no to me!

[Yppej]

Is S staff or is S student?

[Zoe Girl]

Oh yes! Definite clear standards around that. I didn't friend parents or even most colleagues until after i left. This is a supervisor and staff situation. A little fuzzy because some people are friends already, but i wouldn't text staff personally.

[Yppej]

Did he touch her leg on the job or after hours?

[Teacher Terry]

Glad your new workplace can handle problems.

[Zoe Girl]

Is S staff or is S student?

She is a staff,

[Tradd]

Oh yes! Definite clear standards around that. I didn't friend parents or even most colleagues until after i left. This is a supervisor and staff situation. A little fuzzy because some people are friends already, but i wouldn't text staff personally.

Oh, I didn’t get that. Will have to read it again.

[dado potato]

It does appear that the organization has a mechanism that is working to respond to this staff person's allegations.

I am curious how clear and complete is the organization's policy on sexual harassment. (The International Labour Organization ilo.org has published a sample policy that defines sexual harassment, details informal and formal Complaints Mechanisms, identifies Sanctions, and assigns organizational responsibility for Monitoring Compliance... with Explanatory Notes).


The an Administrative Law Judge for the National Labor Relations Board has ruled that employees talking about working conditions, as a "concerted activity", is protected speech. In the linked article from 2014 it is legitimate for employers to police certain forms of "gossip", but not to hamper the concerted activity of employees talking about unsatisfactory working conditions (such as harassment). http://www.hrlegalist.com/2014/01/rumor-has-it-employers-need-to-be-weary-of-no-gossip-policies/