Congress marches to the beat of its own drum, quietly doling out taxpayer funds to hush up victims of harassment.
John Conyers, a Democratic representative out of Detroit, was forced to settle with a wrongly fired employee in 2015. The employee was allegedly fired for refusing Conyers’ sexual advances. The employee claims that she was paid off with funds out of Conyers’ office. Those funds, of course, come from taxpayers.
The employee was paid more than $27,000 for her wrongful firing. Essentially, the employee was provided with three months’ severance before being removed. While the payment may have momentarily eased her financial burden, Buzzfeed reports that the woman was left feeling like she had no other option. Take the money and shut up.
“I was basically blackballed. There was nowhere I could go.” -Conyers’ victim
Besides the fired employee, Conyers has been accused of making advances on numerous other female staffers. The allegations go beyond “just” requests for sexual favors from staff. Conyers allegedly touched numerous staffers on their legs and backs without permission.
If the average American were to sexually harass a coworker or employee, s/he would likely be fired from his or her job. Legal consequences, including both civil lawsuits and criminal charges, could also come into play. This is especially true if physical contact was part of the charge, or if there were long-term consequences (e.g., an employee quitting over sexual harassment).
Congress, however, marches to the beat of a different drum. When members of Congress harass their employees, the risk of getting fired is minimal. In theory, criminal charges could be levied against members of Congress, but that’d require a willing legal system and a considerable amount of evidence.
In practice, most cases are settled quietly out of court, with taxpayer dollars used to hush plaintiffs up.
Unlike many companies and organizations, Congress lacks a proper human resources department. Instead, the official and most direct route for setting a sexual harassment or other claim is through the Office of Compliance. Employees have only 180 days to file a claim with the Office of Compliance. Should the plaintiff seek legal representation, that representation will be paid for out of their own pocket. Members of Congress, on the other hand, receive free representation.
In order for a complaint to progress, a confidentiality agreement must be signed. Once the confidentiality agreement is signed, the process moves toward counseling and mediation. Following these steps, the plaintiff could move to press charges in federal court. In practice, most cases are settled quietly out of court, with taxpayer dollars used to hush plaintiffs up.
Last week, it was revealed that Congress has paid out more than $17 million over the last 20 years to settle complaints. This money, of course, comes directly from the taxpayer. While victims should be compensated if they are harassed, allowing Congress to quietly pay hush money also shields them from any real repercussions.
