2.1 Equal Employment Opportunity
It is the Library’s policy to provide equal opportunity in employment for all individuals regardless of race, color, creed, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability or political affiliation.
2.2 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA)
The Library only hires persons who are legally authorized to work in the United States. IRCA requires employers to verify the employment eligibility of all new employees. Employees must complete an I‐9 form within three (3) days of starting to work. This form is used to verify identity and authorization to work.
For more detail and updates, see U.S. Departments of Justice, Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices at http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/osc.
2.3 Mississippi Employment Protection Act
Pursuant to Mississippi Code of 1972, Annotated, § 71‐11‐3, the Library participates in EVerify, the federal government’s voluntary employment verification program. The Library is registered for and utilizes the Department of Homeland Security’s EVerify System by submitting social security numbers of new hires to verify their immigration status and employment eligibility. The EVerify program is used to verify new hires only after an I‐9 form has been completed. The program does not pre‐screen applicants or re‐verify the employment eligibility of current employees.
2.4 Prohibitions against Harassment
The Library is committed to a professional workplace, free from adverse working conditions and all forms of harassment. Harassment is defined as unwelcome conduct based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability and/or age, and is strictly prohibited. Harassment includes unwelcome conduct by supervisors or coworkers that is severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Enduring the offensive conduct is never a condition of continued employment. The Library also strictly prohibits harassment of individuals in retaliation for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or lawsuit concerning a discrimination claim. Retaliation is prohibited against employees who oppose employment practices that they reasonably believe is illegal discrimination. The Library's prohibition against harassment includes, but is not limited to, remarks, slurs, epithets, gestures, physical contact, threats, display or circulation of written or electronic materials, pictures or objects derogatory to any person based on the characteristics listed above. The Library strictly forbids this type of behavior. Such will not be tolerated at any level of the organization.
All employees are encouraged to report unwelcome, harassing conduct by any Library employee. Even if the conduct is not directed at the employee, anyone affected by the offensive conduct is encouraged to report the behavior. The Library expressly prohibits any unwelcome harassing conduct and will take appropriate steps to prevent and promptly correct such conduct.
The Library specifically acknowledges that sexual harassment is a form of discriminatory harassment and is strictly prohibited. Sexual harassment will not be tolerated. Immediate and appropriate action will be taken to address violations of this policy.
The victim of the alleged sexual harassment may be a man or a woman and can be the same sex as the harasser. Further, anyone affected by the offensive conduct may be considered a victim, not only the person directly subject to the offensive conduct. No employee of the Library should imply, suggest or threaten that an applicant's or employee's decision to participate in sexual conduct will have any impact on the individual's employment status, including but not limited to, assignment, compensation, promotion or other condition of employment.
Sometimes an employee has willingly participated in conduct of a sexual nature, but later wishes the conduct to stop. To claim a hostile work environment, the employee must clearly notify the alleged harasser that the conduct is no longer welcome. The sexual conduct is unwelcome if the employee does not solicit or incite the behavior and regards it as undesirable or offensive. If the sexual conduct continues, the employee should immediately report it. The Library will take immediate and appropriate steps to stop any unlawful harassment.
Sometimes sexual harassment may be found even when sexual activity or language is not at issue. If negative conduct is gender‐based, pervasive and directed at an employee because of his/her sex, it may also be considered sexual harassment and is prohibited.
2.4.1 Inappropriate conduct by members of the public
TThe Lincoln Lawrence Franklin Regional Library Board of Trustees has certain standards of acceptable behavior on Library property and grounds in order to maintain an atmosphere that promotes the use and enjoyment of the resources and services of the library, promotes the safety of the general public and the library staff, and protects the building, furniture, equipment, and materials of the library.
Any activity that interferes with the rights of other patrons to use the library, disrupts the normal functioning of the library, could result in physical, emotional, or mental injury to oneself or others, or could result in damage to the facilities, equipment, or materials is considered disruptive and unacceptable behavior. See Patron Conduct Policy. Any disruptive and unacceptable behavior should be reported to an immediate supervisor and documented with an Incident Report.
In most cases, a staff member will notify the individual that he or she is in violation of the standards of conduct and will provide one verbal warning. If previous warnings have been issued and the behavior continues, the library may exercise the right to require the patron engaging in disruptive behavior to leave the premises, restrict privileges for a specified period of time, or ban the individual from the library for a specified period of time or permanently. Unlawful activities will be reported immediately to the police.
2.4.2 Free speech v. Conduct
The Library recognizes and encourages public rights to free speech, including the right to receive information in a public library. Employees may encounter materials purchased by the Library or summoned on screen by library patrons that make the employees uncomfortable and upset. Handling and encountering such materials without judgment is part of the work requirement in public libraries. Harassing conduct, on the other hand, is not tolerated. Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment. The test is whether this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.
2.5 Complaint Procedures/Investigation of Complaints
Employees are encouraged to communicate directly with one another in order to assure prompt discontinuation of any behavior found to be offensive. The Library supports the rights of each employee to communicate directly with other employees in requesting that offensive conduct be discontinued. However, informal redress of complaints is not required and the complaining employee may proceed to file a formal complaint in any situation in which informal redress is not feasible or desirable.
No employee or applicant is required to endure workplace harassment. An employee who is unable to resolve the problem or who does not wish to discuss the issue with the offending party should report unwelcome harassing conduct immediately to his/her immediate supervisor or the Library Director. If the immediate supervisor is the alleged source of the harassment, the employee should skip that level of management and report the conduct to the next level supervisor or to the Library Director. The complaint will be immediately investigated and appropriate corrective action will be taken.
If an employee claims the Director is the source of the harassment, the employee should report the conduct to his/her immediate supervisor or to the Chairman of the Library System Administrative Board of Trustees. The Chairman will take immediate steps to investigate the complaint, independent from the Director, and prompt appropriate corrective action will be taken.
In the course of the investigation, the complainant will be requested to submit a written statement describing in detail the alleged harassment and the identity of any individuals that may have relevant information concerning the complaint. A prompt investigation, however, is not contingent on the employee submitting the written statement. In determining whether the conduct is sufficiently severe or pervasive to create a hostile work environment, the Library will evaluate the behavior from the objective standpoint of a "reasonable person." The Library will consider the context in which the alleged harassment took place and examine the behavior using the perspective of a reasonable person's reaction to a similar environment under similar or like circumstances. Corrective action will reflect the severity of the conduct. In all circumstances, the Complainant will be informed of the results of any investigation and the action taken.
2.6 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)—Accommodation Requirements
The Library will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment. A qualified employee or applicant with a disability is an individual who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the job in question.
An individual with a disability is a person who:
- has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities;
- has a record of such an impairment; or
- is regarded as having such an impairment.
The Library will make a reasonable accommodation for the known disability of a qualified applicant or employee if it does not impose an undue hardship on the legitimate administration of the Library.
Applicants will not be asked about the existence, nature, or severity of a disability. Applicants will be asked about their ability to perform specific job functions. All requests for accommodations and steps to evaluate such requests will be documented by the Library Director.
The Library strictly prohibits retaliation against any employee or applicant exercising rights granted by the ADA. Also, any coercion, intimidation, threats, harassment or interference in the exercise of any employee or applicant's rights granted under the ADA, or of the encouragement of someone else's exercise of rights granted by the ADA, is strictly prohibited.
“Undue hardship is defined as an action requiring significant difficulty or expense when considered in light of factors such as an employer's size, financial resources, and the nature and structure of its operation. An employer is not required to lower quality or production standards to make an accommodation; nor is an employer obligated to provide personal use items such as glasses or hearing aids…. Employees and applicants currently engaged in the illegal use of drugs are not protected by this policy nor by the Americans with Disabilities Act.” For more detail and updates, see U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s description of disability discrimination at http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/disability.cfm.
2.7 Age Discrimination Employment Act (ADEA)
The Library does not discriminate on the basis of age and protects applicants and employees forty (40) years of age and older from discrimination on the basis of age in hiring, promotion, discharge, compensation, or terms, conditions or privileges of employment. The ADEA is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) - For more detail and updates, see U.S. Department of Labor Equal Employment Opportunity’s description of age discrimination at http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/age.cfm.
2.8 Religion—Accommodation Requirements
The Library does not discriminate on the basis of religion when hiring, terminating, or setting conditions of employment. The Library treats employees and job applicants equally, without regard to religious beliefs and practices, except to the extent a religious accommodation is warranted. For example, the Library will allow employees to wear clothing and ornaments that hold religious meaning for an individual.
The Library will reasonably accommodate an employee's sincerely held religious practices unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the legitimate administration of the Library. A reasonable religious accommodation is any adjustment to the work environment that will allow the employee to practice his/her religion. An undue hardship is defined as requiring more than ordinary administrative costs, diminishing efficiency in other jobs, infringing on other employees' job rights or benefits, impairing workplace safety, or causing co‐workers to carry an undue share of potentially hazardous or burdensome work. Legally, the Library may not provide an accommodation if such conflicts with another law or regulation. Religious expression in the workplace is permitted, unless such imposes or would impose an undue hardship on the Library.
Religious harassment of any employee is prohibited and should be immediately reported to the immediate supervisor or the Library Director. If the immediate supervisor is the alleged source of the harassment, the employee should skip that level of management and report the conduct to the next level supervisor or the Library Director. The complaint will be immediately investigated and appropriate corrective action will be taken. If the Director is the alleged source of the harassment, then the employee will report the alleged harassment to the Chairman of the Library System Administrative Board of Trustees [or to his/her immediate supervisor who will then be responsible for reporting the behavior to the Chairman]. The Chairman will take immediate steps to investigate the complaint, independent from the Director and prompt appropriate corrective action will be taken. Consistent with other policies prohibiting retaliation, no employee will be retaliated against for making a claim of religious discrimination, requesting a religious accommodation, or reporting religious harassment. Retaliation against an employee for participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or litigation under Title 7 is also prohibited.
For more detail and examples see U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Compliance Manual Section 12: Religious Discrimination at https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/section-12-religious-discrimination.
2.9 Prohibitions against Retaliation
The Library will not dismiss, demote, harass or otherwise "retaliate" against an individual for filing a charge of discrimination, participating in a discrimination proceeding, or otherwise opposing discrimination. The same laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, and disability, as well as wage differences between men and women performing substantially equal work, also prohibit retaliation against individuals who oppose unlawful discrimination or participate in an employment discrimination proceeding.
In addition to the protections against retaliation that are included in all of the laws enforced by EEOC, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) also protects individuals from coercion, intimidation, threat, harassment, or interference in their exercise of their own rights or their encouragement of someone else's exercise of rights granted by the ADA.
For more detail and updates, see U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s description of Retaliation at https://www.eeoc.gov/facts-about-retaliation.
2.10 Whistleblower Act Protection
A Library employee who reports or provides information to a state investigative body about what he/she believes, in good faith, is an improper act by the Library, is entitled to Whistleblower Protection as described in Mississippi Code of 1972, Annotated, § 25‐9‐171 et seq. Employees are protected from reprisal or retaliatory action such as unwarranted letters of reprimand, demotion, reduction in pay, denial of promotion, suspension, or dismissal and denial of employment if such actions were the result of the employee's whistleblowing activities.
2.11 Drug Free Workplace Act
The Library is committed to providing a drug free workplace. The Library encourages employees and volunteers to voluntarily seek help with drug and alcohol problems. It is a violation of the Library’s drug‐free workplace policy to use or possess alcohol or unlawful controlled substances while on the job or on the employer’s premises. It is a violation to report to work under the influence of, or to have ability impaired by alcohol. Pre-employment drug testing may be required of applicants, and positive drug screens will result in an offer of employment being rescinded.
The use of controlled substances is inconsistent with the behavior expected of employees. It subjects all employees and patrons to unacceptable safety risks and undermines the library's ability to operate effectively and efficiently. The unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensation, possession, sale or use of a controlled substance in the work place or while engaged in library business at any time is strictly prohibited.
11.17.2022 hyperlink update -> https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/section-12-religious-discrimination, https://www.eeoc.gov/facts-about-retaliation
Reviewed and updated 03.18.2025