Cabinet okays measures for timely, stiffer action against govt officials in sexual harassment cases
A Cabinet meeting on Tuesday approved measures to enforce disciplinary action against government officials in sexual harassment cases, deputy government spokeswoman Ratchada Thanadirek said on her Facebook page.
“The measures were proposed by the Office of the Civil Service Commission [OCSC] with the aim to standardise policies relating to disciplinary action and ethics management among government officials,” she said.
Ratchada also said the measures would allow human resource management departments in government agencies to enforce suitable disciplinary action against officials who have committed sexual harassment or violated ethics codes either by physical actions or using online platforms (cyber bullying via social media).
“The disciplinary actions include removal from office or temporary suspension, either with or without pay, and other applicable legal actions,” she said. “The supervisors must make sure that these actions are enforced in a timely manner. Failure to do so will be considered a misconduct or a disciplinary offence.”
The Cabinet also ordered the OCSC to work with human resource management departments in government agencies to draft standards and regulations relating to the enforcement of disciplinary actions, which will be added to the Civil Service Act BE 2551.
“The prime minister especially emphasised the issue and said that if a government official is found through adequate evidence to be involved in any sexual harassment, he should be immediately removed from office,” Ratchada added.