Equal Employment Opportunity

SDSU Research Foundation (SDSURF) is an equal opportunity employer. In accordance with applicable law, we prohibit discrimination and harassment against employees, applicants for employment, individuals providing services in the workplace pursuant to a contract, unpaid interns and volunteers based on their actual or perceived: race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles ), religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status (including registered domestic partnership status), sex and gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), gender identity and gender expression (including transgender individuals who are transitioning, have transitioned, or are perceived to be transitioning to the gender with which they identify), age (40 and over), sexual orientation, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status and any other consideration protected by federal, state or local law (collectively referred to as "protected characteristics").

For purposes of this policy, discrimination on the basis of "national origin" also includes discrimination against an individual because that person holds or presents the California driver's license issued to those who cannot document their lawful presence in the United States, as well as discrimination based upon any of the following: an individual’s or individual’s ancestors’ actual or perceived physical, cultural or linguistic characteristics associated with a national origin group; marriage to or association with individuals of a national origin group; tribal affiliation; membership in or association with an organization identified with or seeking to promote the interests of a national origin group; attendance or participation in schools, churches, temples, mosques or other religious institutions generally used by persons of a national origin group; or a name that is associated with a national origin group. An employee's or applicant for employment's immigration status will not be considered for any employment purpose except as necessary to comply with federal, state or local law.

SDSURF allows employees to self-identify their gender, name and/or pronoun, including gender-neutral pronouns. SDSURF will use an employee’s gender or legal name as indicated on a government-issued identification document, only as necessary to meet an obligation mandated by law. Otherwise, SDSURF will identify the employee in accordance with the employee’s current gender identity and preferred name.

SDSURF will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based upon these protected characteristics or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local law. SDSURF also does not retaliate or otherwise discriminate against applicants or employees who request a reasonable accommodation for reasons related to disability or religion. Our commitment to equal opportunity employment applies to all persons involved in our operations and prohibits unlawful discrimination and harassment by any employee, including supervisors and co-workers.

Prohibited Harassment

SDSURF is committed to providing a work environment that is free of illicit harassment based on any protected characteristics. As a result, SDSURF maintains a strict policy prohibiting sexual harassment and harassment against employees, applicants for employment, individuals providing services in the workplace pursuant to a contract, unpaid interns or volunteers based on any legally-recognized basis, including, but not limited to, their actual or perceived race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles), religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status (including registered domestic partnership status), sex and gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), gender identity and gender expression (including transgender individuals who are transitioning, have transitioned, or are perceived to be transitioning to the gender with which they identify), age (40 or over), sexual orientation, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, immigration status or any other consideration protected by federal, state or local law.

For purposes of this policy, discrimination on the basis of "national origin" also includes harassment against an individual because that person holds or presents the California driver's license issued to those who cannot document their lawful presence in the United States and based on any of the following: an individual’s or individual’s ancestors’ actual or perceived physical, cultural or linguistic characteristics associated with a national origin group ; marriage to or association with individuals of a national origin group; tribal affiliation; membership in or association with an organization identified with or seeking to promote the interests of a national origin group; attendance or participation in schools, churches, temples, mosques or other religious institutions generally used by persons of a national origin group; or a name that is associated with a national origin group. All such harassment is prohibited.

This policy applies to all persons involved in SDSURF’s operations, including managers, supervisors, co-workers, students, faculty, coaches, counselors and peer advisors. Visitors to the campus and workers employed by the University, other auxiliaries, and other public or private organizations engaged in business with SDSURF are expected to comply with this policy. If such harassment occurs on SDSURF’s premises or is directed toward an employee or a third party interacting with SDSURF, the procedures in this policy should be followed.

Sexual Harassment Defined

Sexual harassment includes unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors or visual, verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:

• Submission to such conduct is made a term or condition of employment; or
• Submission to, or rejection of, such conduct is used as a basis for employment decisions affecting the individual; or
• Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an employee's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.

Sexual harassment also includes various forms of offensive behavior based on sex and includes gender-based harassment of a person of the same sex as the harasser. The following is a partial list:

• Unwanted sexual advances.
• Offering employment benefits in exchange for sexual favors.
• Making or threatening reprisals after a negative response to sexual advances.
• Visual conduct: leering; making sexual gestures; displaying sexually suggestive objects or pictures, cartoons, posters, websites, emails or text messages.
• Verbal conduct: making or using derogatory comments, epithets, slurs, sexually explicit jokes, or comments about an employee's body or dress.
• Verbal sexual advances or propositions.
• Verbal abuse of a sexual nature; graphic verbal commentary about an individual's body; sexually degrading words to describe an individual; suggestive or obscene letters, notes or invitations.
• Physical conduct: touching, assault, impeding or blocking movements.
• Retaliation for reporting harassment or threatening to report sexual harassment.

An employee may be liable for harassment based on sex even if the alleged harassing conduct was not motivated by sexual desire. An employee who engages in unlawful harassment may be personally liable for harassment even if SDSURF had no knowledge of such conduct.

Other Types of Harassment

Harassment on the basis of any legally protected characteristic, as identified above, is prohibited. Prohibited harassment may include behavior similar to the illustrations above pertaining to sexual harassment. This includes conduct such as:

• Verbal conduct including threats, epithets, derogatory comments or slurs based on an individual’s protected characteristic;
• Visual conduct, including derogatory posters, photographs, cartoons, drawings or gestures based on protected characteristic; and
• Physical conduct, including assault, unwanted touching or blocking normal movement because of an individual’s protected characteristic.

Abusive Conduct Prevention

It is expected that SDSURF and persons in the workplace perform their jobs productively as assigned, and in a manner that meets all of managements’ expectations, during working times, and that they refrain from any malicious, patently offensive or abusive conduct including but not limited to conduct that a reasonable person would find offensive based on any of the protected characteristics described above. Examples of abusive conduct include repeated infliction of verbal abuse, such as the use of malicious, derogatory remarks, insults, and epithets, verbal or physical conduct that a reasonable person would find threatening, intimidating, or humiliating, or the intentional sabotage or undermining of a person's work performance.

Protection Against Retaliation

Retaliation is prohibited against any person by another employee or by SDSURF for using SDSURF’s complaint procedure, reporting proscribed discrimination or harassment or filing, testifying, assisting or participating in any manner in any investigation, proceeding or hearing conducted by a governmental enforcement agency. Prohibited retaliation includes, but is not limited to, termination, demotion, suspension, failure to hire or consider for hire, failure to give equal consideration in making employment decisions, failure to make employment recommendations impartially, adversely affecting working conditions or otherwise denying any employment benefit.

Discrimination, Harassment, Retaliation and Abusive Conduct Complaint Procedure

Any employee who believes they have been harassed, discriminated against, or subjected to retaliation or abusive conduct by a manager, supervisor, co-worker, student, faculty, coach, counselor, a peer advisor, a visitor to the campus, a worker employed by the University, other auxiliaries, or other public or private organizations engaged in business with SDSURF, in violation of the foregoing policies, or who is aware of such behavior against others, should immediately provide a written or verbal report to their supervisor, any other member of management, the Director of Human Resources, or the SDSURF EEO Officer.

Employees are not required to make a complaint directly to their immediate supervisor. Supervisors and managers who receive complaints of misconduct must immediately report such complaints to the Director of Human Resources or the SDSURF EEO Officer who will attempt to resolve issues internally. When a report is received, SDSURF will conduct a fair, timely, thorough and objective investigation that provides all parties appropriate due process and reaches reasonable conclusions based on the evidence collected. SDSURF expects all employees to fully cooperate with any investigation conducted by SDSURF into a complaint of proscribed harassment, discrimination or retaliation, or regarding the alleged violation of any other SDSURF policies. SDSURF will maintain confidentiality surrounding the investigation to the extent possible and to the extent permitted under applicable federal and state law.

Upon completion of the investigation, SDSURF will communicate its conclusion as soon as practical. If SDSURF determines that this policy has been violated, remedial action will be taken, commensurate with the severity of the offense, up to and including termination of employment. Appropriate action will also be taken to deter any such conduct in the future.

Other People to Contact

The Office of Employee Relations & Compliance (OERC) is the office at the University that is designated to coordinate the University's response to complaints of unlawful harassment and discrimination. Complaints of harassment and discrimination may be reported to the Employee Relations & Compliance Office at 619-594-6464 or at http://oerc.sdsu.edu. They may document the complaint and redirect the complainant to the appropriate employer, including SDSURF. Any report of unlawful harassment or discrimination to an officer of the University is considered a report to the University. Those officers are listed on the OERC website on the SDSU Homepage. However, neither the officers of the University nor the OERC coordinate SDSURF's response to complaints. Notice to the OERC or a University official does not constitute notice to SDSURF. Therefore, conversations with persons other than professional staff in SDSURF Human Resources Department do not constitute notice to SDSURF of unlawful harassment.

The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) will accept and investigate charges of unlawful discrimination or harassment at no charge to the complaining party. Information may be located by visiting the agency website at www.eeoc.gov or www.dfeh.ca.gov.

Further Information

SDSURF provides its employees with SDSURF's Policy Against Unlawful Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation concerning information on sexual harassment in the workplace. If you have any questions concerning this Policy, please feel free to contact SDSURF Human Resources.

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