Bell Road Barn Players, Inc.
Harassment Prevention Policy
Adopted: 1/1/2021
Amended:

BELL ROAD BARN PLAYER INC. HARASSMENT PREVENTION POLICY

Bell Road Barn Players, Inc. is committed to a community theater environment in which all individuals are treated with respect and dignity. Each individual has the right to participate in community theater in a professional atmosphere that promotes equal opportunities and prohibits discriminatory practices, including harassment. Therefore, Bell Road Barn Players, Inc. expects that all relationships among persons in the theater will be business-like and free of bias, prejudice, and harassment.

In order to keep this commitment, Bell Road Barn Players, Inc. maintains a strict policy prohibiting unlawful harassment of any kind, including sexual harassment and harassment based on
• race
• color
• religion
• national origin
• sexual orientation
• gender identity or expression
• sex
• age
• physical or mental disability
• any other characteristic protected by state, federal or local employment discrimination laws

This policy applies to all who participate in the theater, including but not limited to actors, production staff, show directors, members of the board of directors, volunteers, and anyone who engages in unlawful or harassment policy violations in the theater.

Sexual harassment includes, but is not limited to, making unwanted sexual advances and requests for sexual favors where either:
1. Submission to such conduct is made an explicit or implicit term or condition of participation; or
2. Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis of theater casting, staffing, or volunteer decisions affecting such individual; or
3. Such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual’s role in the theater or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.

Employees who violate this policy are subject to discipline up to and including the possibility of immediate discharge from the theater.

Some examples of unlawful harassment are:
• Verbal conduct such as epithets, derogatory jokes or comments, slurs or unwanted sexual advances, invitations or comments related to a protected characteristic.
• Visual conduct such as derogatory and/or sexually oriented posters, photography, cartoons, drawings, e-mail and faxes or gestures related to a protected characteristic.
• Physical conduct such as assault, unwanted touching, blocking normal movement or interfering with work directed at an employee because of the employee’s sex or other protected characteristic.
• Threats and demands to submit to sexual requests in order keep one’s job or avoid some other loss, and offers of employment benefits in return for sexual favors.
• Retaliation for having reported or threatened to report unlawful harassment.
Any participant in the theater, patron, or other person who believes he or she has been harassed by a co-actor, performance director, technical crew, volunteer, board member, or other agent of Bell Road Barn Players, Inc. or patron should promptly report the facts of the incident or incidents and the names of the individual(s) involved to the show liaison to the board of directors, and/or the president of the board of directors (president@bellroadbarn.org) Upon receipt of a complaint, the theater will undertake a prompt, thorough, objective and good faith investigation of the harassment allegations.

If the organization determines that harassment has occurred, effective remedial action will be taken in accordance with the circumstances involved. Any person determined by the Agency to be responsible for harassment will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, up to and including termination from volunteering / contracted activities; and or a temporary or permanent ban from attending theater functions / events / productions, etc.

No actor, crew, volunteer, or patrion will be retaliated against for filing a complaint and/or assisting in a complaint or investigation process. Further, we will not tolerate or permit retaliation by anyone against any complainant or anyone assisting in a harassment investigation.