HR3010 - Discrimination Complaint Procedure for Employees and Applicants

1. Institutional Regulations
   A College employee or applicant for employment who believes that College policies or procedures on equal opportunity in employment or education have been violated, resulting in discriminatory treatment on the basis of race, color, national origin, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, genetic information (in employment), actual or potential parental, family or marital status or, to the extent covered by law, veteran status, may file a formal complaint through the College Discrimination Complaint Procedure or with the appropriate state and/or federal agencies. Subjecting a person to coercion or retaliation for filing a complaint or providing information regarding a complaint is prohibited. Students may file a formal complaint through the College’s Discrimination and Harassment Complaint Procedure for students (ES4645 ).
2. Procedure
   1. ​The Discrimination Complaint Form for Employee and Applicants is used for complaints not related to Title IX.  A link to the complaint form is provided at the bottom of this procedure. Complaint forms may also be obtained from the DMACC Web Site, Affirmative Action Officer, Human Resources, campus Provosts’ offices, and Academic Deans’ offices. Title IX complaints are to be filed based on guidance in the Title IX policy/procedure located at https://www.dmacc.edu/titleix/Pages/welcome.aspx.
   2. Discrimination Complaint Procedure
      1. Step 1
         1. The complainant shall submit a Discrimination Complaint Form for Employees or Applicants (P-30 - see link at the bottom of this procedure) within 15 working days of the day the complainant became aware of, or should have become aware of, the discrimination issue through the reasonable exercise of diligence. In no instance may this be later than 300 days from the date of the alleged discriminatory treatment.
         2. Complaint forms shall be submitted as follows, unless the recipient is named in the allegations, in which case the recipient shall be the next higher level authority
            
            Complainant > Recipient
            
            Applicant > Hiring Supervisor
            
            Employee > Immediate Supervisor
             
         3. The supervisor may elect to meet with the complainant if additional information is needed. The supervisor shall review the complaint with the next higher level of authority and issue a written response as soon as a reasonable investigation can be concluded but no longer than 45 calendar days from the receipt of the complaint.
      2. Step 2
         1. If the complainant is not satisfied with the response received at Step 1, they may submit the Discrimination Complaint Form to the Affirmative Action Officer within 5 working days from receipt of the Step 1 response.
         2. The Affirmative Action Officer, or designee, shall meet with the complainant and any other parties deemed appropriate. The Officer shall review the complaint with the appropriate Vice President or other direct report to the President, and issue a written response within 10 working days from receipt of the complaint at Step 2.
      3. Step 3
         If the complainant is not satisfied with the response received at Step 2, they may submit the Discrimination Complaint form to the President within 5 working days from receipt of the Step 2 response. The President, or designee, may meet with the complainant or any other parties deemed appropriate. A final written decision shall be issued within 10 working days from receipt of the complaint at Step 3.
   3. All reported complaints shall be investigated.
      1. Investigators shall maintain the role of a neutral in the investigation process.
      2. Investigations shall be conducted in a thorough and objective manner to determine the facts. Investigations may involve the collection of data/evidence from 3rd parties and witnesses.
   4. Information related to a complaint shall be kept confidential to the maximum extent possible. Selected information, including the name of the reporting party, may be disclosed as deemed necessary by the person in charge of the investigation.
   5. Time limits may be extended by written mutual agreement of the parties. If a complainant fails to proceed to the next step within the prescribed time limits, the complaint shall be considered closed based upon the last response. If the administration fails to respond within the prescribed time limits, the complainant may proceed to the next step.
   6. An employee found to have committed discrimination may be subject to discipline, up to and including discharge.
   7. The College expressly prohibits the intentional filing of a false discrimination claim. An intentional false claim is different from a claim where the conclusion is unfounded or of no eventual determination.

 

Adopted: October 1, 2002
Reviewed: Annually

Revised:
July 1, 2004

October 1, 2004

November 1, 2008

November 1, 2010

March 1, 2011

October 1, 2014

October 30, 2015

March 24, 2016

February 21, 2017

September 1, 2020

June 10, 2022

Related Form: Discrimination Complaint Form