Policies

Since the 2000 vote by Town Meeting, the Board of Selectmen has adopted various personnel policies relating to employment civil rights issues. For example, in 2011, it adopted a Policy Against Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, and Retaliation (PDF) that had been developed by the Human Resources Director and vetted through the Department of Human Relations-Youth Resources and the Human Resource Board.

That policy was a successor to the 1993 Policy Against Sexual Harassment. Like the 1993 policy, the 2011 anti-discrimination policy gave the Human Resources Department the task of investigating and redressing employment discrimination complaints. The Board of Selectmen has also adopted a Family and Medical Leave Policy (2009) and CORI Policy (2012) implementing those laws that afford employees certain rights to privacy and leave.

Equal Employment Opportunity Policy

The Human Resources Director has drafted an Equal Employment Opportunity Policy touching on some of the topics addressed formerly in the affirmative action guidelines (recruitment, hiring, etc.). That draft has been shared with the HRYR Commission for comment. To date, the policy is still under discussion and the Board of Selectmen has not yet acted on the proposal.

The Board of Selectmen would like to resolve and clarify the roles and responsibilities for town anti-discrimination policies and oversight. To accomplish that goal, the board expects a thoughtful review of existing policies and practices with recommendations for any changes that will strengthen the promotion of diversity, inclusion, fairness, and equal opportunity in Brookline, particularly in the context of the workplace environment.