FHWA’s Anti-Harassment Process – FAQs (for Management) 

1. What is the Anti-Harassment Process? 

The Anti-Harassment Process (Process) provides individuals with a neutral forum where they can 

report harassment and be confident that their allegations will be seriously considered by 

management. 

2. What is the purpose of the Process? 

The purpose of the Process is to ensure prompt inquiry of harassment allegations, to take prompt and 

effective action to stop any ongoing harassment and, if appropriate, discipline the responsible party. 

3. Who is implementing this Process? 

The Process is being implemented by the Anti-Harassment Coordinator (Coordinator) who is 

authorized to coordinate allegations of any type of harassment relating to the FHWA workplace. The 

Coordinator reports to the Associate Administrator for Civil Rights. Through this Associate 

Administrator, the Process reports to Executive Management, which may intervene if the 

Coordinator reports that management’s actions regarding an allegation are not sufficiently prompt or 

thorough; thus, there will be institutional support for taking prompt and effective action when 

harassment exists. 

4. Who can utilize this Process? 

This Process may be utilized by FHWA employees, contractors, employees of FHWA partners (such 

as State DOT employees) or applicants for employment. 

5. How does the Process work start to finish? 

If an Aggrieved Person (AP) believes he or she has been harassed in the workplace, the AP may 

contact the Coordinator who will subsequently set up an intake meeting with the AP. The AP should 

do his or her best to be available for this meeting as quickly as possible to initiate the process in a 

timely manner. At the intake meeting, the AP and the Coordinator will discuss the timing and details 

of the potential harassment, identify the claimed perpetrator of the harassment (Respondent), and 

identify the pertinent supervisors of the Respondent. After the meeting, the Coordinator will provide 

notice of the allegations to the Respondent’s supervisor and will begin to obtain and consider 

information relating to the allegations. 

Within about a week, the Coordinator will then respond to the AP by email, either accepting the AP’s 

allegation(s) for inquiry or dismissing the allegations if they are not within the scope of the Process. 

Among other requirements, the alleged harassment must be recent or ongoing to be accepted for 

inquiry. If an allegation is accepted, the Coordinator will prompt the first line supervisor of the 

Respondent to coordinate with HR to investigate the allegations, make a decision as to 
whether the allegations are substantiated, and report the results back to the Coordinator within 15 

business days. If the allegations are substantiated, the first line supervisor of the Respondent is 

required to provide a report to the Coordinator that includes a plan of proposed relief and discipline. 

While the inquiry is ongoing, the supervisor, in coordination with HR, may implement interim 

measures to prevent further harassment. The Coordinator will review the supervisor’s report and 

determine whether the inquiry and accompanying relief are in compliance with the Process. 

Sequence of Events for Harassment Allegation

Allegation  Intake Meeting  Coordinator’s Preliminary Inquiry  Allegation Accepted or 

Rejected  If Accepted: Inquiry and Possible Interim Relief  Allegation Substantiated or 

Unsubstantiated  If Substantiated: Relief and/or Discipline 

6. What is the difference between “accepting” a harassment allegation and 

“substantiating” a harassment allegation? 

A harassment allegation is “accepted” when the Coordinator determines, based on preliminary 

information obtained from management, HR and HCC, that the allegation is either recent or ongoing 

and otherwise fits within the scope of the Anti-Harassment Process. This initial determination 

confirms that the timing and subject matter that the AP has raised are allegations the Process can 

address, and that the AP therefore may be able to obtain relief from harassment through the Process. 

Once an allegation is accepted, the first line supervisor then coordinates with HR to investigate the 

allegations. If the inquiry reveals that harassment has indeed occurred, one or more of the allegations 

is then “substantiated,” and the first line supervisor drafts a plan of proposed relief and discipline. In 

sum, the allegation is “accepted” by the Coordinator based on preliminary information, some of 

which involves timing or process issues, whereas the allegation is “substantiated” by the first line 

supervisor based on information obtained from an actual inquiry, and involves the merits of the 

allegations. 

7. What does a manager do when contacted by the Coordinator about an incident of 

harassment? 

Upon receiving the allegations from the Coordinator, the manager may share them with his or her 

chain of command as well as the AP’s chain of command (excluding the Respondent). A manager 

should begin to consider whether interim relief may be appropriate and may implement interim relief 

quickly if circumstances warrant, but should await the Coordinator’s decision as to whether the 

allegations are accepted prior to taking further action. 

8. What does a manager do if the Coordinator accepts the AP’s allegations? 

Once an allegation is accepted, the Coordinator will send the Respondent’s first level and second 

level supervisor a notice requiring the first line supervisor to coordinate with HR to (1) 
investigate the allegations; (2) decide whether interim relief is appropriate, and if so, implement such 

relief; (3) make a decision within 15 business days whether some or all of the allegations are 

substantiated; (4) if any allegations are substantiated, draft a plan of proposed relief and discipline; 

and (5) notify the Coordinator of the results of the inquiry and any proposed relief and discipline by 

submitting a resolution document to the Coordinator within 15 business days. The second line 

supervisor will be aware that this process is occurring but will not participate in this process, except 

to approve and help implement interim or final relief (if necessary based on the structure of the 

office). The second line supervisor also may be the deciding official for more serious disciplinary 

actions. 

9. What does an inquiry of a harassment allegation look like?

The format of the inquiry will depend on the facts of the specific scenario. Typically, the inquiry will 

involve separate interviews with the AP and the Respondent and any other employees who may have 

knowledge of the incidents involved. After these initial interviews, the first line supervisor (or his/her 

designee conducting the inquiry) should look to corroborate the information obtained in the 

interviews with documentary evidence. After interviews and the collection of documents are 

complete, the first line supervisor or designee will evaluate the information obtained to decide 

whether one or more allegations is substantiated. 

10. What happens once an allegation is substantiated? 

If an allegation is substantiated, the first line supervisor shall promptly proceed with the relief and 

discipline. Under the timeline of the Process, it is anticipated that relief will be initiated within 3 days 

of the acceptance of the resolution document and implemented within 15 days. It is further 

anticipated that discipline will be initiated within 3 days of the acceptance of the resolution 

document. The first line supervisor shall coordinate with HR as in any other disciplinary process, 

with the second line supervisor acting as the deciding official for more serious disciplinary actions. 

Once a decision has been made whether to proceed with discipline and the discipline, if any, has been 

finalized, the first line supervisor will submit a close-out form to the Coordinator, indicating the 

disciplinary outcome. It is anticipated that discipline will be implemented within 60 days of the 

acceptance of the resolution document. 

11. How will a manager know whether his or her proposed response to the harassment 

allegations is sufficient? 

The Coordinator will review the written resolution document within two business days of receipt and 

determine whether the inquiry, the proposed relief, and the anticipated proposed discipline meet 

Process requirements. If Process requirements are not met, the Coordinator will follow up with the 

first line supervisor seeking compliance with the Process, or if necessary, elevate this issue to and 

through her Associate Administrator. If Process requirements have been met, the Coordinator will 

confirm by email to the first line supervisor that the resolution document has been accepted by the 

Coordinator. 

12. How will the AP find out the result of the inquiry? 

Upon acceptance of the final resolution document, the Coordinator will inform the AP by email of 

the results of the inquiry and the relief to be provided. The manager who conducted the inquiry will 

thereafter contact the AP regarding implementation of relief. 
13. Can an AP appeal a decision in this process? 

There is no appeal process to challenge the decision or relief. The AP may pursue other options to 

address the original allegations (for instance, EEO, ADR, Ombudsman, etc.). 

14. Is the process confidential? 

This process is somewhat confidential but the AP will not be anonymous; by participating in the 

process, the AP is agreeing that he or she wants the Agency to investigate the allegations, which will 

require notification of Human Resources, the Office of Chief Counsel, and Respondent’s chain of 

command. Inquiry nearly always requires an interview between a member of the Respondent’s 

management team and the Respondent and may involve the AP’s coworkers who may be questioned 

about their knowledge of what occurred. Dissemination of information by the Coordinator and 

management about the allegations, however, will be limited to those individuals who have a need to 

know and all information obtained from the harassment allegations must be maintained on a 

confidential basis to the greatest extent possible. 

15. Is the Anti-Harassment Coordinator a neutral party? 

Yes, the Coordinator is a neutral party and is not an advocate for the AP, the manager(s) or the 

Respondent. 

16. When is the AP required to report the alleged harassment to use this process? 

There is no specific number of days within which an allegation must be brought. 

17. How long does this process take? 

In the Process, the initial goal is that interim relief will begin to be considered within a few days and 

a decision will be made within 10 days whether the allegations are substantiated. If allegations are 

substantiated, the initial goal is that the AP will be notified of the relief within 2 days of 

substantiation. These timeframes may change as the Agency gains experience with the Process. Any 

discipline that is proposed or administered resulting from the substantiated allegations will occur 

after the inquiry has concluded. Because of privacy concerns for the Respondent, the Agency cannot 

discuss the Respondent’s discipline with the AP. The AP is encouraged to return to the Coordinator 

if, following a substantiated allegation, there are further incidents of harassment. The Coordinator 

may then assist the AP in expediting a response to address the new incidents.

18. What if the Respondent is not an FHWA employee? 

If the Respondent is not an FHWA employee, the Coordinator will refer the allegation(s) to the 

attention of the AP’s first line and second line supervisors. These supervisors should implement 

interim relief, if appropriate, and should seek assistance in investigating and resolving the allegation 

from the management chain of the Respondent and/or the person responsible for coordination with 

that individual’s management (such as the contracting officer representative on a contract, or, in 

instances involving a State partner, the Division Administrator responsible for the relationship with 

that partner). Within 15 business days of this referral, the management official shall report the 
outcome of this referral to the Coordinator by providing a resolution document that outlines the steps 

that were taken to address the allegations. 

19. How is this Process different from the Equal Employment Opportunity Process? 

The EEO Process is based on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination 

(including harassment) based on sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy), 

race, color, religion, national origin, disability, reprisal, or age. It is designed to make people whole if 

they have suffered discrimination and thus it may result in monetary or equitable relief (for instance, 

a retroactive promotion), but the EEO process can be lengthy (up to several years) and may require 

litigation. The Anti-Harassment Process, on the other hand, can resolve incidents of harassment 

relatively quickly and is available to employees regardless of whether the harassment allegation is 

based on a specific EEO category. The Process also enables disciplinary action against the 

Respondent, although it does not offer the payment of monetary relief. Lastly, it should be noted that 

reporting harassment under this Process does not replace or satisfy the requirements for filing EEO 

complaints or complaints in other forums, nor does it delay or waive the time limits for initiating 

claims in these forums.