HomeMy WebLinkAbout10.06.1977 Memorandum of Agreement with the State Department of Human RightsCITY OF.MAPLE\UTIOOD
HUMAN
RELATIONS
COMMISSION
\.
(
\\
1\r
i"'...''
-.,:,....]]--..
I38O F ROST AVENUE MAPLEWOOO, MI NNESOTA 55109
October 6, 1977
llayor
Courrcil
City llanager
Gentlenen:
The suh:rban and outstate c'crnnissions have becore jJlcreasi-rlgly divorced from
State Deparhent of Hunan Rights activities. In an effort to redress tlte
balance, ard at ttE urgj-ng of the State crcnmissions, the Departrent of Hunan
Rights is Jrrplenenting a program tlnt r,eculd make the 1ocal ccnmission an
active parEner iI tlte investigatory process of a charge evolving within an
irdividual crcnrowrity. This program has been a topic of lrla jor discr:ssion for
the last fer^r npntJ"s. Orr ordinance in actuality mardates such a collaboration
as there isn't, and w-j-11 not be, any enforcsrent powers attached to the partxer-
ship rrr will tte crcllaboration cj.rcurnrent or disturb ttre historic role of the
ormissions as advisory arms to the City @unci1.
As a first step to irplerenting a formal colLaborative proposal with the State,
lie sutnitted the l@rDranda to tlle City Attorney for study ard reconnerdation.
6unse1 Baffrigan returned with the followjllg c.orrfiEnts :
- That the agreefiEnt \,lould be birding upon tle parties,
- provision shoul-d be nade in the contract for execution by City Clerk as
r.e1l as l4ajor;
- the actions proposed are within the jr:risdiction of both state ard loca.].
hunan relations conrnissions ;- tlere is no guestion of Council delegation of i-ts poraers;
- it is proper for tlE City @uncil to consider such an agresrEnt. .
Ttp secord step $,ou1d therr a14rar to be one of education, for ccnmissioners,City A&nilistrators and @uncil rrErnbers. tb that end, tre MHRC will play hostto Ccrmrissioner Bill Wilson, State Departrent of Hunan Rights, arrl Iorraine
Hale, coordinator of ttre collaborative proposal ard loca_I crcnrnission liaj_sonto tle State Deparlanenq on October 25th. please join r:s ! Facts right frcrntlte horse's nouth carrlr a great deal rrpre cl-out than pa.ssj_ng ilforrnation on
secord hard.
-Ft-
\
\
2-October 6, 197 ,1 ':
Re: I0l25 },leetjlg - Hwnan Rights
If possible I will mail out a sunrnrization of the l4enDralda before tle neetirg;if this carnot be prepard before harrl I can assure lou ttnt a shoft. briefi-ng
wilL be al1 tllat is required to set tfre stage for the state presentation. Tine
has been set for 8:30P with a toped for adjournnent of l0:00P; City HaU. lEeLing
rccm will be posted. ft r^/ou.J.d be appreciated if 1ou r"ouid RSVP ltlanager l"li11erty l,lcrday the 24th.
Ihank you gentleren I
)4 - -_t
a,"L< fn d c,',""-
M. Iarsen, Chai-rJ-al.rar
cc: fic B1ark
MHRC Ccnrniss ioners
LegaJ. Counsel
Fron: Clty l"lgr '
Peferred To:
l;.ttyot /
Councll y'
Clerk
Ein. Di l:cotor --
Corn. Devol oP ' -..._?atl.s P: \!tc ' "/-
Pub. S1l^'a:/
?ub, r,IIc:l: r;
Attc:::eY
Press
O i;her
Date
frEidentaLly . . . Sardra Kirsch will present a report on tte AAP frcrn 7:45to 8:30 wtrich should be very ilteresling . . you rEy wish to take it in. M.L.
}INI,lORAI.iDU14 OII AGRIlI]i.]EI,IT
?he purpose of this Ivtemorandun of Agreement is to rlescribe
those areas of enforcement activity covered. by chapter 363 of tlle
l{innesota state statute rrhere a corl-aborative effort betvreen the
l'{apl-ewood }Iunan Rights commission and t.he siate Departnent of llurian
Rights can be effectuated.
T. Tahing a Charqe of Discrinrination On Site
Ilhen an alleged discriminatory act occurs witl.rin thejurisdiction of the l4apleivood lluman Rights Comnission andthe charginq party makes initial contact r,rith a designated
rnember (s) of the l.lapLewood Hurnan Rights Cbnmission, iheIocal" commission may complete the Department of HumanRi-<1htsr intake of the charge an<l forr,rard the charge to theDepartment of Ilunan ltights for docketing and processinq.
A. Intake of Charge On-Site
(1) fntake Intervievr'
.In e l-nterv l-e tv
- The purpose of theis to docurrent as muchpertinent information as possible regard-ing an allegatio:r of discrimination.
The charging party shoulcl be asked tobriefly state what they believe to bediscriminatory treatr.lent.. Tile statement
shouLd be recorded on the DIIR Eorm Affi-davit #1.
The charging party should review thestatement for accuracy and sign it. Thesigned Aff iclavit ,11 sl-rou1c] state thebasis, the area of discrimination. whenit occurred , and by whon. A check sl.rouldbe made Lo assure that the charge istirnely, i.e., occurred within six (6)
rnonths of the f iling c1ate.
Based. on the alleged discrimination,the designated local conmission rnembershoulcl prepare DIIR Affidavit #2 by ask-ing the charging party specific iisue-rel-ated questions.
Ansi{ers to the guestions are recordecl onthe affidavit and are reviewed with thecharging party to assure completenessand accuracy, which should inclu<Ie: (1)a detailed statenent of the facts; (2)
names of potential rvitnesses; (3) dates;(4) sequence of events; (5) person (s)involved in dj.scrininatory act (s).
Charging party j.s instructecl to rea<land verify recorded infornation and tosign the affidavit.
Other questions recognized as pertinentto the. invest.igation which the chargingparty is unable to answer during theintake intervievr should be given to thecharging party at the encl of the irrter-view. The charging party is asked tosecure the answers to the questions, whenpossible, ancl return then to the 1ocalcornmission. The local commission willforward the completed information tothe Depart-rnent of lIuman Rights for place-ment in the case file.
(2) I,lulti 1e char IN parties
severa 1 fn 1VJ-ua sw.].sh
- in instancesto make t.he samecomplaint against the same respondent,have each to file a separate pitR norm #1ancl affidavit, even though the language isidentical. This is done so that tfie -
charge forns of the rernaining parties wilIremain in effect if one party at. soneLater date \,/ithdraws their charge.
(3) Date stampin s - Charges are to be date-stamped upon receipt to establish theofficial record, of receipt. Date-stampthe envelope and back of each page, beingcareful not to blot out information.Staple the envelope to the document inorder to preserve a record of the datemailed.
(4) Prorlptness in handling - verified char ges shouldonr.rrded to the Departr,lent of tl...rman Rightsprompt,ly after the intake intervierv has beencompleted. The Departrilent of Iluman itighLs isrequired by statute to notify the respondent andother governnental agencies (if applicable) bycertified nail that a charge has been filed rvithinfive (5) days of receipt of the charge.
(5) Fonvardin of a charge to the De artment of }lurnan-t e verr 1e arge and supportiagvits should be
bcf
Department of llur.ranprocessing.
B. Intake of Char ge Write in
pronptly forwarded to theRights for doc):eting and
Ivhen a charging party subroits a written inquiry to thelocal commission concerning what is believed to bedi scrir,rinatory treatrnent, and the incident conplainedof i-s in the jurisdiction of the l{aplervoocl Hu.nan RightsCoromission, the designatecl cornmission mernber mayreview the vrritten inquiry to determine if the incidentcomplained of appears to fal_1 within the jurisdictionof Chapter 3 63.
ff the practice complained of in the correspondenceto the locaI commission appears to be rvithin thejurisdiction of Chapter 353, the designated connissionnember should select the appropriate Department of
Iluman Rights form letter ancl issue-related affidavitsthat need to be completed by the charging partybefore a formal charge can be written. I.his infor-mation along v/ith a Departrnent of llunan Rights chargeform should be mail-ed to the charging party withinstructions to promptly return the requestecl inforrn-ation to the designatecl cornmission merlber. The chargeform must be signed and notarizecl, and affidavits mustbe signed.
The local- commission should retain the Iett.er ofinquiry in a temporary suspense file along with arecord of the affidavits sent to the charging partyuntil the requested information is returned
Upon receipt of the signed Department of I]r.rman Rights
charge form and issue-related affidavits from the
charging party the designated cornmission member
should remove the l-etter of incjuiry from the tempor-ary suspense file and forward the tot.aI package,
Departnent of Human Rights charge form, affidavits,
ancl letter of inquiry, to the Departnent of HurnanRights for docketing and processing.
II. 3 o-Day I'Jaiver Acrreement
The 3O-day lraiver agreement is a process developed
by the Department of liuman Rights in response to
requests by some employers and Affirrnative Actionofficers for a procedure which would enable employersto internally resolve chargcs of discrimination. The
30-day rvaiver agreement is intended to prornote suchattenpts if the charging party and a respondentbelieve that they might be successful.
A charging party is given the opportunity to 1:artici-pate in the 30-day waiver only at the time a chargeis filed. If the charging party signs the waj-ver
agreement the respondent is invited t.o sign at thetime the notice of charge is served.
The respondent has ten (10) days after receipt ofthe waiver to return the signed agreement. wltenthe agreement is returned to the Department of IlumanRights, the Conraissionerts signature is attached as athird party to the agreement. The terms of the
agreement are:
(1)The department will not begin an investi-gation in the matter for thirty (30) days.
During this 30-day period, the chargingparty and respondent rnay make any effortsthat they desire in order to reach a pro-
posed settl"ement of the charge of discrim-ination.
(2)
(3) Any settlement or agreement concerning or
A
rel-ated to the subject matter inis not binding upon the chargingthe respondent unless it is also
the Commissioner of ]lur0an Rights.
the chargeparty or
signed by
(4) fne agreement rnay be cancelled at any time byany party by sending writ.t,en notice to allother parties.
(5) Entering the 30-day waiver agreement doesnot constitute an adnission by the respond.entof a violation of the l,linnesota }Iuman RightsAct.
B. Local Conmi ss i.on Collaboration - when a chargingpate in thes assigned to
party and respondent agree to partici
30-day waiver process the case file ia conciliator for a 3O-day period.
(1) Upon receipt of the case file the concil_iatorwill contact the charging party to discussthe issues involved in the charge, possible
remedies and how the charging party feelsabout meeting with the respondent. If thecharging party or respondent, request assistancein negotiating a conciliation the concil-iatorwill contact the designated I'lap Ier./o od HumanRights Commission ancl invite the member toparticipate as the charging partyrs representatj.vein negotiations. If the designated cornmissj.on
member accepts, the conciLiator wilI provide
the member with pertinent information aboutthe charge and possible rer.ledies.
(2) The responclent will be notifieil of the local
comnission I s involvernent by the conciliator.The designated conmission menber will schedulemeetings between the respondent and thecharging party. The conciliator will providetechnical- assistance as requested by thelocal cornmission member.
(3) fne local commission member will rvrite theproposed Terms for Conciliation arrivecl atby the respondent, and the charging party andsubmit ther.l to the conciliator for ieview andplacement in the standard conciliation agree-ment format.
ff the respondent does not feel- that the waiveragreement is an appropriate \ray to resolve thenatter, the charge of discrinination j-s referred tothe Enforcement Division of the departrnent forinvestigation.
(4)
IfI. Inves tigation
The terms of tl:e proposed conciliation
agreement rvi1l be submitt.ed to the Comrnissionerfor approval, and then to the designated
commission member, the charging party and therespondent for siqnature. After all four (4)parties have signed the agreement, an executed
copy vrill be f orwarded to the l"laplerdood Ilurian'Riqhts Comnission for the record.
A Invitation to Collaborate
trIhen a charge o.E di scr iminat,iorl is assigned to a
Department of Hr:rna n Right.s investigator foractive investigation and the alleged act ofdiscrirnination occurred within the jurisdictional
area of the l,Iaplervood lluman Rights Comnission, aninvitation to collaborate on the invesligationwiLl be extended by the Department of HurnanRights investigator to a designated local commissionnrember. The l-ocal comnission may accept or rejectthe invitation at the time of the initial contactby the Department of Hr.man Rights investigator.If the local commi.ssion accepts the invitation tocollaborate on the investigation, the Department.of lIiman Rights rvill notify the locaI commissionevery sixty (50) days from the clate of assignmentof the st,atus of the charge until the charge j.s nolonger in the juriscliction of the departraent.
B. Scope of Col,laborat.ion - Investi ga tive
The designated comraission members col-Iaborationin the investigation shall inclucle:
(1) Scheduling of interviews vrith pertinentparties as identified by the assignecl
Department of Human Rights investigator.
(2) Taking pertinent witnessest statements ineither affidavits or interviev/ reportforns.
(3) Arrange on-site investigiation itineraryat respondentts place of business, ancl ifappropriate assist in the coll-ection ofrecords and other st.atistical data asrequested by t.he Department of llumanRights investigator.
(4) I{rite up observations obtained as a resultof the on-site visit when reque.sted
by the Department of liu-nan Riqhts investi-gator.
C. I{erts Rel ea se s
Ivhen a charge of discrinination is renedicd andthere has been collaboration on the investj-gation
betrueen the Departrent of lluman Right.s anrl the
I,lapler.rood lluman Rigilts Connission, a j oint. newsrelease will be issued. The departrilent r.ri Il-provirle the local- conmission lriLh an overview ofthe issues and events occurring in the case, andthe local cornnission wiII provide information onthe locaI involvement.. The local commission willrelease and post aIl such news re1e.-rses.
IV. Conciliation Process
The objective of the conciliation process is toachieve voluntary coropliance with the l4innesota
Ilunan Rights Act by means of a wrj.t,ten agreement.following a charge, investigation, and a deternin-ation of probable cause by the Commissioner of
Iluman Rights. The rrritten agreernent resultingfrom concj.liation should include a just resolutionof the j,ssues, ancl assurances that the resl)ondentwiLl eliminate unfair (un1awful) practj,ces andtake appropriate affirmative action.
Within ten (10) days after the respondent receivesthe probable cause determination. the conciliatorassigned to the case rvi1l send the responclent a
copy of the deparLmenLts terms. The terms orcond.itions which will make the charging party
whole sltould include atl actual darnages, plusinterest, the charging party J-ost (compensatory
damages), punj.tive danages from 925.00 to 9500.00,and corrective measures if necessary.
The respondent is given thj.rty (30) days toarrange for a mutually convenient conciliationconference wi-th the conciliator at the conciliatorrsoffice, unless otherwise stj,pulated, which shoulclonly occur under unusual circumstances.
The invitation to participate in a conciliationconference is alr'rays sent to the respondent bymaiI. The respondentrs acceptance may be eitherby mail or telephone.
A
In the case of the pre-deternination settle-ment, the abbreviated standard form agreementwilL be used. rn aII other, the depa; tr.rent i sstandarcl fornr agreement which includes seven(7) provisions is man<Iatory for a1l satisfactorilyadjusted conciliation cases. A slight rnodifica-tion of the stan(lard form agreement. will bepermitted in certain circumstances with theapproval of the Assistant Cor,urissj_oler forEnforcement ancl the Conunissioner.
ceneral Provisions of the D e artment I s Standardorm A greement:
(1) The agreement does not constituteadmission of a violation.
l2)
(3)
Charging party.
(4) A11 enplolrment practices to bein a non-discriminatory manner,respondent.
Commissioner of the Department of IlumanRights shall review conpliance with theagreement.
conduc tedby the
Reporting requirernents.
Particular provisions of the conciliation.
The agreement is the final decision ofthe department.; is enforceable inDistrict, Court of ltinnesota pursuant tol,linnesota Statutes 363.091, in<l settlesall matters contained in the above-entit.ledcharge of cliscr imination.
B. Local Comnission Collabo ra tion
(8) A triparte signature; first the Corunissionerof
-
I{r.!xan Rights; seconcl, the respondentiand third, the charging party.
(s)
(6)
(7)
(I) Ifhen a local commission has agreed toenter into a collaborative agieement ona specified charge of discrirnination ,the conciliation phase of the investi_gative proeess may be includecl in thescope of involvement by that commission.
Note: A loca1 commj.ssion may lot participatein the conci l iation-FEEc-on f v.
(3)
(2)I^Ihen the case file is referred to aconciliator, tlre designated local- commissionis coatacted and informed that the case isin concil-iation. The concilrator vril]explai.n the conciliation procedure:
(a) that. the department is seeking awritt.en agreement vritll remedies of theviolation and provide appropriate relieffor the charging party and other similarlysituated persons, if t,hey exist.
(b)that the agreement vril1 contaj-n a waiverof the charging partyrs right to sue
where the charging party is a partysignator.
(c) that if an agreenent acceptable tothe departrtent is obtained, the matterwiLl- not be referred to a public hearing(litiqation).
(d) that no admission of the violationis necessary in or<ler to make a statement
and none is ;rrssari.6.
(e) that conciliation efforts are confidential
uncler the departnentI s proceduralregulations, and under the statute.
(f) tnat it is advantageous for a respondentto settle through conciliation thusavoiding a lawsuit, adverse publicity,extra expense which accompany suchaction.
(g) that the concil-iation meeting istotally confidential and any sununarativediscussion of the case will be kept
total- l-y conf idential.
(l-t) that the conciliatlon conference andthe conciliation process is totally avoluntary process, and if conciliationfails, there be no negative reflectionon the respondent.
The charging party vri]1 be specificaLlyadvised that the department will seek the iindof remedy that is provicled in the Minnesota
Iluman Rights Act and can be provided by ahearing officer or district court. The loca1commission member should explain that thedepartnent may not be able to resolve alIproblems in the case that is pending against therespondent, and advise the charging party thatif conciliation efforts fail, respondent-isstiIl 1iab1e to defend a civil_ action brought bythe Department of lluman Rights.
The l-ocal connission member wiII write theproposed Terms for Concil-iation arrived at
by the responclent and the charging party and
submit them to the conciliator for review andplacenent in the standard conciliation agree-
ment format.
The terms of the proposed conciliation
agreement vril-I be submitted to the Commissionerfor approval, and then to the designated com-
rnission member, the charging party and the
respondent for signature. After aII four (4)parties have signcd the agreenent, an executed
copy lrill be forwarded to the l,laplewood Human
Rights Conrnission for the record.
V Security and Confidentiality of Records
It is understood that all infornation, docunents, and
records of testj.mony collected during an investigation
under this agreement are t.he property of the Departmentof Iluman Rights and are private as specified uncler thedata privacy act.
VI . Jurisdiction of Charge
Under this agreement a charge may not be jointly filed
w1 th t.he loca1 comnrission and Ehe- trepartment oi l{urla nRights. The local commission members shalJ- explainto a charging party his,/her option to fi,1e with thelocal conrnission or wit.h the Department of liuman Rights.
Although the I'linnesota Statutes, Chapter 363.116. statesthat a local- coramission may refer a matt,er under itsjurisd.icti.on to the Commissioner 1t also states clearlythat the actual filing of a charge with a loca1 comrnissionprecludes the option of fiting the sane charge vrithanother commi ssi.on.
(4) The respondent will be notified of the local
commissionts involvement by the conciliator.
The designated commj.ssion raember wiIl schedule
meetings vrith the respondent. The conciliatorwill provide technical assistance as reguest.edby the local cornrnission member.
VII. Supplies Provided to Local lluman Rights Conmiss ions
The state Department of lluman Rj.ghts
Conmission with department suppLiesthis collaborative agreement..
vrilI provide the
needed to carry out.
A SuppJ-ies provided by stat.e Department of
Ilunan Rights:
(1) Department of H\rrlan Rights Charge
forms
(2) DepartrAent of lIlnnan ll,ights Affidavits
#1 and #2
(3)
(4)
(s)
(6)
Department date stamp
Appropriate Department of liumanRights form Letter ( s )
3 0-day l,Iaiver Agreements
Standard form P re-conc i lia t ion
Agreements
VIII . Termination of Agreement
This agreement may be terminate<l by either the commissionor the Department of Ilunan Rights on thirty (30) daysnotice.
This l.lerorandum supersedes all others prior to t.his date.
Approvecl by l,laple\rood
Human Rights Conunission
Da ted
Cha irpe r son
I'layor
Approved by the t'linnesota
Department of lluman Right s
Date
william L.
Depar tmen t Wilson,of lium3n
Connis sioner
Rights