Question NW718 to the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services

Reply:

1. The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development has a policy and procedure on sexual harassment in place, which came into effect in 2008 and was reviewed in 2015 to ensure compliance with the Policy and Procedure on the Management of Sexual Harassment of the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA).

(i) Reports/cases are investigated by a Committee which is established in terms of the departmental policy and procedure, and which is constituted by officials from the following components within the Department:

1. Employee Relations;
2. Employment Equity; and
3. Change Management and Gender Unit.

(ii) Details of the consequence management and sanctions stipulated by the policy are:

1. Counseling;
2. Verbal warning;
3. Written warning;
4. Final written warning;
5. Suspension without pay;
6. Demotion (as an alternative to dismissal);
7. Dismissal; and
8. Change Management.

2. (a) Total number of incidents of sexual harassment that have been reported in the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development are as follows:

(i) In each of the past three financial years:

• 2014/15       :       Five (5) cases were reported
• 2015/16       :       One (1) case was reported
• 2016/17       :       One (1) case was reported

(ii) From 01 April 2017: Three (3) cases were reported

(b) The number of cases that were:

(i) Opened and concluded:

• 2014/15       :    Five (5) cases were opened, of which three (3) were concluded
• 2015/16       :    One (1) case was opened and two (2) cases were carried over from previous financial year. The two (2) cases concluded during this financial year were those carried over from previous financial year.
• 2016/2017  :    One (1) case was opened and one (1) case was carried over from previous financial year making, of which both cases were concluded.
• From 01 April 2017: Three (3) cases were opened, with two (2) cases   concluded.

(ii) Withdrawn:

• 2014/15                   :      Zero (0) cases
• 2015/16                   :      One (1)  case
• 2016/17                   :      One (1)  case
• From 01 April 2017:     Two (2) cases

(iii) Remained Open, based on incidents:

• 2014/15                   :      Two (2) cases (carried over to next financial year)
• 2015/16                   :      One (1)  case (carried over to next financial year)
• 2016/17                   :      Zero (0) cases
• From 01 April 2017:     One (1)  case

(c) Sanctions issued for each person who was found to have been guilty:

• 2014/15       :    From the three (3) cases finalised, three (3) employees were found guilty and a sanction of Suspension without pay was imposed.
• 2015/16       :    From the two (2) cases finalised, one (1) employee was found guilty and a sanction of Suspension without pay was imposed, and one (1) case was withdrawn after the parties agreed on a settlement - deemed closed and finalised.
• 2016/17       :    From the two (2) cases finalised, one (1) employee was found guilty and a sanction of Suspension without pay was imposed, and one (1) case was withdrawn/closed due to a lack of evidence - deemed closed and finalised.
• From 01 April 2017:   Two (2) finalised cases were withdrawn, as there was lack of cooperation by the one complainant and the other case was concluded informally - deemed closed and finalized.

(a) The Department of Correctional Services is in process of finalizing the Policy on the Prevention and Management of Sexual Harassment in the Department. The draft policy was consulted widely with recognized labour unions and employees.

The Department of Public Services and Administration Sexual harassment Policy for the Public Service is used as the mandating policy Framework.

(b)   Assaults are regulated by the Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 under Code of Conduct of acts of Misconduct

(i) Procedure Followed

• After a sexual harassment complaint is lodged by a complainant, an investigator is appointed by the employer to investigate the incident in line with the disciplinary code of the department.
• After appointing the investigator, sexual harassment investigations must be finalized within 30 days.
• Should the stipulated 30 days lapse before an investigation of a sexual harassment case in conducted by the investigator, the complaint should be consulted with request for an extension of up to a maximum of 14 days to conclude the case.
• In an event that more time is required to conclude the investigation, reasonable exceptional circumstance should be clearly stated by the investigator, with substantive reasons to ensure a balance between fairness and flexibility.
• Each request should be treated on merit.
• Consent by the complainant(s) to grant an extension should not be unreasonably withheld.
• A Sexual Harassment Committee has been appointed in line with the DPSA Policy and departmental policy. The Committee ensures that reported cases are brought to the attention of the National Commissioner and are investigated. Follow up is also conducted by the `Committee`

(ii) Consequences management

• The Department of Correctional Services policy statement and disciplinary consequences of sexual harassment both state that, sexual harassment incidents may lead to a dismissal.
• The following sanctions, depending on the nature and seriousness of the sexual harassment incident, made be imposed on an alleged perpetrator if found guilty:

1. Counselling
2. Verbal warning
3. Written warning valid for six months
4. Final written valid for six months
5. Suspension with or without pay (not exceeding three months)
6. Demotion/ Dismissal

The above sanctions are contained in the Department`s Disciplinary Code and Procedure and also inform sanctions entailed in the policy.

(2) (a) The total number of sexual harassment cases are as follows:

 

	SEXUAL HARASMENT
Incident	2014/2015	2015/2016	2016/2017	Since 1 April 2017
Opened and concluded	5	5	7	3
Withdrawn		1	1	0
Sanctions
Corrective Counselling		0	0	0
Final Written Warning	3	0	2	0
Suspension without Salary	1	2	0	0
Dismissal		0	0	1
Acquittal		2	4	0

 

a) The total number of assault incidents are as follows:

 

	ASSUALTS
Incidents	2014/2015	2015/2016	2016/2017	Since April 2017
Opened and concluded	145	109	51	77
Withdrawn	60	16	5	6
Sanctions
Corrective Counselling	12	5	13	10
Verbal warning	11	20	8	10
Written Warning	15	22	17	13
Final Written Warning	18	12	4	5
Suspension Without Salary	4	9	1	5
Dismissal	1	4	0	10
Acquittal	24	21	3	18