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5 things to know about New York’s new sexual harassment laws

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New York State's new sexual harassment laws offer greater protection
The #metoo movement has galvanized women worldwide. Photo credit: Jeanne Menjoulet

Whether you’re an employee or an employer, it’s smart to get up to speed on New York State’s new sexual harassment prevention laws. In light of the #metoo movement, it’s great to see that New York State is taking the issue of sexual harassment seriously.

New York State has done an excellent job with its “Combating Sexual Harassment in the Workplace” website. The website has sections for employers and workers along with FAQs and links to useful resources.

Here are five things you should know about the sexual harassment prevention policies that New York State has implemented.

Sexual harassment prevention policies must be in writing 

Every employer has to have a policy, and they must share it with their employees. The state Department of Labor, in consultation with the Division of Human Rights, developed a model sexual harassment prevention policy. Employers can use this or adopt a similar one that meets or exceeds standards.

Employees must get sexual harassment prevention training

What’s cool about this rule is that the training has to be interactive. That means an employer can’t just hand out a document for an employee to read and call that training. The state is providing all kinds of resources to help employers, so they don’t have to develop their own training. Why reinvent the wheel? The resources are in a variety of formats, including a PowerPoint presentation. Training must be offered by Oct. 9, 2019 and continue annually.

Employers must have a specific form for sexual harassment complaints 

By requiring a specific form, the state is ensuring that employees and employers will have a written record of the complaint. The state is providing model forms in both pdf and docx. The form asks specific questions, such as the name of the accused, when the incident(s) took place, how it’s affecting the complainant and her or his work, etc. The form also asks if the complainant has retained an attorney and if she/he wants to have the employer work with the attorney. If that’s the case, then they need to supply the attorney’s contact information.

Sexual harassment investigation must be done in a timely manner

A company’s policy must pledge to conduct an investigation in a timely manner and confidential to the extent that is possible. Unfortunately, it doesn’t explain what exactly “timely” means. However, there are clues within the model policy, such as the statement that “Upon receipt of complaint, [person or office designated] will conduct an immediate review of the allegations, and take any interim actions (e.g., instructing the respondent to refrain from communications with the complainant), as appropriate.” 

Human Rights law applies to independent contractors 

There’s good news for people like me who work as independent contractors. The Human Rights Law now protects contractors, subcontractors, vendors, consultants or others providing services in the workplace from sexual harassment in the workplace, according to the state website.

As a person who works in the field of communications, I am impressed with the comprehensiveness of the state’s website on this issue. If you’re an employee and you haven’t heard yet from your employer about its policy,  contact your supervisor or the human resources department.

What is your company doing about the new regulations? 

Want to ward off dementia? Here are 5 food tips

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blueberries keep your brain healthy
Blueberries are a sweet way to protect your brain from various types of dementia.

If you feel like your work performance is at an all-time peak, getting dementia may be the last thing on your mind.

But take a look at your older relatives, particularly your own parents or grandparents, and you may have cause for concern.

When reading the book Brain Rules for Aging Well, I was alerted to a new diet (or healthy eating plan as I like to think of it) that has shown promising results in warding off dementia.

It’s called the MIND diet, and according to the National Institute on Aging,  it emphasizes natural, plant-based foods, limits foods that are high in animal and saturated fats, and specifies eating green leafy vegetables and berries daily.

I found this awesome PDF on the internet about the MIND diet put together by the South Denver (Colorado) Cardiology Associates. One of the contributors is Dr. Richard Collins, also known as the Cooking Cardiologist. (You gotta love that moniker.)

Too many people suffer from dementia

My dad had dementia before he passed five years ago, and my mother has it now. So naturally, I’m concerned about my own brain health, especially because scientists have yet to come up with any  medication to treat dementia effectively, and a staggering number of older people have some form of it. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, nearly 5.7 million Americans currently have the disease and that number is expected to grow to nearly 14 million by 2050. About two-thirds of the sufferers are women.

The MIND diet is a combination of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH diet. Researchers at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago developed it, and they found that people who adhered closely to it lowered their risk of Alzheimer’s Disease by 53 percent, and those who adhered to it moderately lowered their risk by 35 percent. It’s terrific news that if you only follow the MIND plan moderately, you can still significantly reduce your risk of getting dementia. And if you do follow it, you’re also going to reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer.

I wouldn’t say there are big surprises in the MIND diet but here are five tips that focus on brain health and seem reasonably easy to adopt into your eating plan. I’ve been told that the best thing to do is incorporate one change at at time for a few weeks, then when that’s successful, pick a second thing to change.

Eat three servings of whole grains daily

This one surprised me in terms of the quantity. Of course, we know that whole grains are better than white bread or white rice or white pasta. One serving would be the equivalent of a piece of bread.

Blueberries rock!

Blueberries are the only specific fruit mentioned in the MIND diet and are singled out for being one of the more potent foods to protect the brain. I’m vowing to add them frequently to my breakfast routine.

lettuce
A salad a day is recommended to ward off dementia.

Green, leafy vegetables are a must

The diet advocates one salad per day. Given the abundance of various leafy greens at our local markets, this should be easy to do. We just need to avoid the fatty toppings like cheese and certain dressings.

Fill up on beans

Three times a week is a good measurement of whether you’re getting enough. Remember to rinse a can of beans, too, to reduce the sodium, if you’re going that route.

almonds
Almonds, cashews and other nuts in moderation are a good snack.

Nuts about nuts?

If you love cashews and almonds like I do, the MIND diet is perfect. It advocates for one serving daily and a serving is about what fits into a woman’s hand. I love to just eat a couple of these nuts several times throughout the day for a quick pick-me-up.

Other items to eat in the MIND diet are poultry (twice a week); fish (once a week); olive oil for cooking; and a glass of wine a day — hurrah! But preferably red wine.

My biggest challenge? Cutting back on cheese. Only one serving per week is recommended. Oy, this is going to be a hard one for me.

What are you doing to keep your brain healthy to prevent getting dementia? I’d love to hear about your efforts.

To read more about the MIND diet, click here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How is God calling you to be a disciple?

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Praying can help us think about how to be disciples of Christ.
Praying and listening to God can help us determine how to serve Him best.

On July 15, I served as the Communion Service Presider at Heather Heights assisted living facility in Pittsford.  I’ve been a lector at Mass at St. Louis Church for several years, and I recently went through training to help with the Communion Services that my church offers at two facilities each Sunday.

Below are the remarks I gave regarding the liturgical readings of the day.(1 AMOS 7:12-15; 1 EPHESIANS 1:3-10; and MARK 6: 7-13.) About 25 residents attend the service each Sunday. 

In today’s Gospel, Jesus sends out the Apostles in pairs to share in his ministry of preaching and healing.

The Apostles are called to “preach repentance,” and they have no visible means of support such as money, but we’re told that God’s grace is with them as they “drove out many demons and they anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.”

Like the Apostles and the prophet Amos in the first reading, we have been chosen to be Jesus’ co-workers in continuing God’s plan of bringing healing and grace to a broken world.

Few of us are called to be prophets or to wander from town to town, driving out demons.

But we are all called to be disciples.

It’s a matter of finding out how God wants us to do that.

In the last few years, I’ve personally been thinking more and more about how I can be a better disciple of Christ. I no longer work a full-time job, and I try to do volunteer projects that involve St. Louis Parish and our ministry called Saint’s Place.

Today is my first time being a communion service presider, and I felt called to do this when I heard one of the other presiders speak last fall at Mass. She spoke about this opportunity and the need for more volunteers. I immediately thought that this could be a new way for me to serve God.

I truly think that the Holy Spirit touched my heart that day. If I had chosen not to go to Mass that day at St. Louis, or if I’d been out of town, I would not have heard the message, and I would not be standing in front of you now.

So that experience leads me to tell you that I think that being a disciple of Christ means looking for that opportunity and being open to it.

I know that many of you here today might wonder about ways that you can be a disciple at this stage in your life. You may, like Amos, think of yourself very differently; he thought of himself as a shepherd.

Cross in Kayserberg, France
This cross stands at a cemetery for World War II veterans in Kayserberg, France, which my husband and I visited in April.

But the beauty of Jesus’ message is that He wants us to be disciples in the day-to-day happenings of our lives, too. That can mean showing kindness to your fellow residents and the people who serve you here at Heather Heights. It can be offering a listening ear to someone you believe may be lonely; or being a cheerful presence in the company of others.

A few weeks ago at St. Louis, at the end of Mass we sang the hymn “They will know we are Christians by our love.” I felt so good singing that hymn.

Some of the lyrics are:

We will work with each other, we will work side by side
And we’ll guard each man’s dignity and save each man’s pride
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

 I think you can substitute the word “disciple” for the word “Christian,” as you think about today’s Gospel.

And they’ll know we are disciples by our love, by our love
Yes, they’ll know we are disciples by our love.

One of my favorite Catholic authors is a man named Matthew Kelly. He writes about how each one of us needs to take a few minutes every day to sit in what he calls “the classroom of silence” and listen to God. Today, let’s each of us sit in that classroom and think about today’s Gospel reading of Jesus sending the disciples out into the world. Then  let’s ask God how we can best be his disciple.

Source for some of this reflection: At Home With the Word 2018