The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission created a stir in August when one of its offices opined that a company must not prevent employees involved in an ongoing internal investigation of harassment from discussing it. Reactions were swift and diverse. Some lawyers applauded the pronouncement; others suggested that it flew in the face of standard operating procedure, which says that confidentiality is essential to ensure the integrity of an investigation.
It all began when the EEOC’s Buffalo field office sent a letter to a company whose name has been redacted. The company had a written policy that threatened to discipline or dismiss employees involved in an investigation of harassment if they spoke out. The agency said in its letter that an employee is free to complain to anyone about discrimination, citing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (which prohibits workplace harassment and discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and religious belief).
