YDSA WM Grievance Policy
Establishing a Position:
In order to create an organizing environment in which all individuals, especially survivors, feel safe and respected, and to combat a culture that protects perpetrators in favor of one that prioritizes survivors, YDSA WM is establishing an official grievance policy and executive position specifically tasked with handling grievances — the grievance officer. In order for the grievance officer to effectively foster cultural change within YDSA WM, YDSA WM recognizes that every member of YDSA WM must be invested in creating a culture where survivors are respected and empowered.
The grievance officer will sit for a term of 1 year in order to preserve consistency and maintain the seriousness and integrity of the position. Re-election is encouraged but should be taken and discussed seriously by voting members. The elections will be held at the end of every academic year.
The position of grievance officer should be taken seriously by the entire organization, but the grievance officer is not alone. The Haven at WM is a resource for the grievance officer for guidance and emotional support as they navigate the position. In the event that a grievance officer no longer feels comfortable in the position, they may step down at any time, triggering a special election for the rest of their term. The grievance officer is a resource that survivors can use to feel safe in YDSA WM, but cannot always serve as a primary source of emotional support for survivors in YDSA WM, and is able to draw boundaries with survivors and provide other resources as needed. That said, survivors are not burdens – the decision to report is a survivor’s alone, but YDSA WM seeks to uplift survivors and encourage them to seek the resources they need without feeling that their concerns are burdens that YDSA WM or a grievance officer must bear.
Training Responsibilities:
The outgoing grievance officer will be responsible for training the incoming grievance officer via the curriculum set forth by the first grievance officer and approved by the executive board via 2/3 majority vote. Changes to said curriculum must be approved by the executive board via 2/3 majority vote.
The grievance officer will be responsible for organizing the harassment prevention training each year in two parts, both of which are mandatory for voting rights. The first part is presented by the grievance officer and covers YDSA WM’s values and no-tolerance policy, and the second section should be presented by Someone You Know (SYK), and covers consent, healthy relationships, bystander intervention, supporting survivors, and available resources. Changes to either the grievance officer’s presentation or the subject matter of the SYK presentation must be approved by the executive board via a 2/3 majority vote.
Makeup trainings can be offered at the discretion and availability of both the grievance officer and SYK presenters.
The grievance officer is also responsible for training each new executive board on what to do if a member comes to them with allegations against another member. This curriculum and any changes to it are to be approved by the executive board via a 2/3 majority vote.
The grievance officer is expected to give at least two short continuing education presentations per semester.
Grievance Procedures and Responsibilities:
The grievance officer exists as a resource to the entire membership of YDSA WM — any
experienced unwelcome conduct may be reported to the grievance officer, who will move
forward to the executive board confidentially. Experienced unwelcome conduct includes, but is not limited to harassment, stalking, and interpersonal violence. Survivors are not required to report misconduct to only the grievance officer. If the survivor does not want action taken within the group but would like resources, the survivor can request any resources and information from the grievance officer (Title IX reporting options, no-contact orders, appointments at The Haven, medically reporting etc.). When speaking to the grievance officer, survivors are under no obligation or expectation to share any details of their experiences. Coming forward should be as accessible as possible for all survivors, and it is enough for survivors to say that they have experienced harm. It is YDSA WM’s policy to believe any person reporting unwelcome conduct they have experienced and to follow through with the wishes of the survivor, up to and including asking the person(s) indicated in the report to voluntarily leave the organization.
When a report is made to the grievance officer, the officer will proceed according to the
survivor’s wishes. The survivor may elect to seek removal of the person in question through any member of YDSA WM’s executive board asking them to voluntarily exit the space or the
survivor may elect to withhold any such action unless another report is made against the same person. The survivor may add any variety of other conditional actions to their request. No actions are taken unless a survivor has requested them and consented to the steps discussed with the grievance officer. The grievance officer is unable to request that a member exits YDSA WM unless the grievance officer has been notified of conduct and received a request directly from a survivor.
If a survivor is uncomfortable making a report to the grievance officer or any other member of the executive board, a second party may make a report on behalf of the survivor if they have been sent directly by a survivor with the survivor’s consent. These reports will be considered first-hand reports and not hearsay, but before the grievance officer can proceed with removal of a member, they must receive direct consent to do so from that survivor, and that consent cannot be communicated by the second party.
When a member is asked to leave YDSA WM, they are reminded of the no-tolerance policy and standards of conduct all members agreed to uphold when they went through the mandatory training. When they have violated those standards of conduct, they are asked to leave the space in the interest of the safety of all members of YDSA WM and the integrity of our spaces.
In the event a person indicated in a report refuses to voluntarily exit the space, the reporting party/survivor will be made aware of the situation and the grievance officer can provide the reporting party/survivor with options and resources. The grievance officer is able to assist survivors in reporting processes, investigations, and the pursuit of sanctions and no-contact orders as needed.
Other parties are encouraged to provide information to a grievance officer if they know of any potential misconduct (hearsay), but no action is taken unless a survivor has requested it. Members are also encouraged to speak to the grievance officer about potentially problematic attitudes and conduct among members, including but not limited to: invalidating survivor’s experiences, inappropriate comments, and hearsay, so the grievance officer can better try to educate YDSA WM and improve the organization for survivors.
In the case that a survivor has requested a member be asked to leave YDSA WM only if other
allegations against the same member emerge, secondhand allegations of misconduct (hearsay) justify the grievance officer in moving forward. When a survivor requests moving forward only after other allegations against the same member have been reported, the grievance officer is responsible for updating all survivors involved and receiving final consent to move forward.
In the event that one or more involved survivors request that a perpetrator is asked to leave
and one or more involved survivors request that the same perpetrator is NOT asked to leave, the grievance officer will ask the perpetrator to leave. This option best preserves the safety and integrity of the entirety of YDSA WM, and survivors that did not request for the perpetrator to be asked to leave are in no way responsible for that perpetrator’s exit from YDSA WM.
In the event that a survivor is not comfortable coming to the grievance officer, the survivor may approach any member of the executive board and request the same actions, as the grievance officer will have trained the executive board in how to appropriately handle situations. Executive board members are expected to preserve confidentiality of the survivor’s identity and follow all of the survivor’s wishes, but may discuss the situation with only the grievance officer in order to ensure they are moving forward appropriately. Executive board members are expected to preserve all confidential information in these discussions, as well as have obtained consent from the survivor before sharing any details. No allegations are to be shared with the entire executive board without the survivor’s consent to move forward with the removal process.
All executive board members of YDSA WM, including committee chairs, from this moment
forward agree to immediately resign from their positions and leave the organization should any allegations of misconduct against them arise. The grievance officer is considered a member of the executive board and is also bound by this policy. All members of YDSA WM may come to any member of the executive board if they are concerned about the grievance officer’s conduct. In the event that there are serious concerns about a grievance officer’s behavior, attitudes, or any misconduct, the grievance officer may be impeached by the executive board via unanimous vote. The grievance officer is also subject to the same impeachment procedures outlined in the constitution.
When the grievance officer position is transitioning from one member to another, the outgoing grievance officer is responsible for notifying the incoming grievance officer of situations where a survivor has asked that YDSA WM only moves forward with an allegation if another report against the same member emerges. In this case, it is necessary for the incoming grievance officer to be made aware of the identities of all members involved, so adequate communication can be facilitated in the event that another report emerges and YDSA WM moves forward. It is also necessary that the outgoing grievance officer communicates any known hearsay to the incoming grievance officer, in the event that a report against a member named in hearsay emerges. These are the only instances in which an outgoing grievance officer provides any information about survivors, situations, or any other confidential information to the incoming grievance officer. Before any of this information can be transferred, the outgoing grievance officer must notify and obtain consent from those survivors.
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