DON’T LOOK THE OTHER WAY
By Karl Overbeek
By now we should all be keenly aware of the problem of harassment in the work place - and yes, that includes the church. In recent years we have painfully learned we are not immune to this problem. In the State of California, it is now mandated that we have training by 2021.
Realizing the magnitude of the problem, the RCA issued this directive:
To instruct the GSC to develop and implement a sexual harassment policy and procedures for reporting and responding to incidents; and furthermore, ensure that investigations into such allegations will result in protection and non-retaliatory behaviors toward the reporters…To enact denomination-wide education and training to include boards, institutions, agencies, commissions, regional synods, classes, consistories, and congregations, reporting back to General Synod 2019 its progress and details of implementation. (W 18-2)
Our Far West Region Executive, Bruce Bugbee, followed through on this matter and asked me to help develop a policy along with training tools. Truth be known, not a lot of Classes have policies in place at the time. I sought policies from the RCA, CRC, and other denominations - plus a number of other organizations in the workplace. From this information, we began to develop a policy that would make sense to our churches and classes in the FWR. Such a policy (linked) was formulated and presented to the FWR Summit in May of this year and adopted. We are fully aware of the fact this document is a work in progress since laws change from time-to-time. We do know our present document conforms to California State Law, which has the highest standards of all the states.
What we quickly learned is that policies are more readily available than training tools. I engaged Natalie Yunger, Stated Clerk, Rocky Mountain Classis, and two trusted friends who are knowledgeable about workplace problems and policies, Lynn Zwagerman and Roger Connolly, to help find and evaluate training tools - you will find them listed in the training section of the policy.
What we were looking for is a go-to training tool tailored for the church and easy to access on the internet. In the search, Pastor Kevin Harney, Shoreline Church of Monterey suggested we contact Kathleen Johnson, a member of Shoreline and expert in the area of harassment. Kathleen has developed her own consulting business.
After a number of meetings with her, Bruce instructed Josh Wierenga to work with Kathleen and produce a two-hour online training specifically designed for the FWR and beyond. It’s training that a church of any size can access and use. The cost is set to make it available to all.
Having a policy is vital to our spiritual health. We have in place a policy and each Classis in our Region is in the process of reviewing and adopting it - making sure each every church has a policy.
What now becomes critical is that we take seriously the importance of training. The training is now open for enrollment (see link below). The “ball” of taking responsibility will be in the hands of every Classis and local church to ensure that such training is achieved soon - State mandated deadline its early 2021. As Christians realizing we need to set the pace in this important matter, wen can get this accomplished much soon. And by-the-way, training is required every two years - because laws will change.
This is not a time to look the other way!