Tomkat Disciplinary Procedure

Purpose:

  • TOMKAT is dedicated to transparency and fairness. In that vein, below are the disciplinary procedures that we shall follow when dealing with future issues

Actions: 

In response to being informed or discovering an attendee has broken the rules of TOMKAT or breached the attendee code of conduct the organizers may take the following actions. The actions will escalate if there are cases involving repeated acts of rule breaking.

  • Verbal Warning
    • This may happen on site, on the phone, or on a video chat. This may be combined with another action below if deemed necessary. A note will be made in the records.
  • Official Written Warning
    • A verbal discussion will happen with two TOMKAT organizers and the attendee to discuss the issue at hand. The attendee will be given a chance to speak but it will be done in a respectful way. 
    • The contents of the discussion, details of the infraction, how the attendee behaved in the follow-up discussion (reasonable, civil, aggressive, disrespectfully, etc),  will also be noted in the report. This report will be kept in TOMKAT’s records. 
    • An attendee must attend a minimum of THREE camps without a similar issue occurring to have the warning expire  If the issue does occur before three camps that they are present at and in good standing have occured, they will be suspended for at least one camp.
    • If an attendee has had a warning expire, they will be considered to be in good standing 
    • Expired warnings will be kept on file.
  • Suspension
    • The attendee is not allowed to attend events run by TOMKAT for a certain amount of time (example: not allowed to attend camp for two camps and any work weekends that fall within that period). Period of time to be specified by Tomkat Board.
    • During this time, the attendee will also be suspended from posting on the TOMKAT Fetlife group. 
    • Any violation or attempted violation of the suspension will result in immediate permanent ban.
    • After the period of suspension is ended, the attendee must be revetted. 
      • There will be two organizers on the re-vetting call. The board will approve the organizers to do the call.
      • The vetting will be more strenuous than a regular vetting. This may include questions pertaining to the offense, pertaining to more appropriate responses, and the attendee’s judgement.
      • The attendee will need to convince both organizers doing the vetting that circumstances have changed and that the attendee is no longer an issue for the camp.
  • Permanent Ban
    • The attendee is not allowed to attend camp again, is banned from the TOMKAT Fetlife group, and is not welcome at events run by TOMKAT.
    • This is the most severe action taken and is done in cases where there is a pattern of behavior and other measures are not appropriate.
    • After five years of being on permanent ban, an attendee can ask for the case to be re-examined. 
      • Reversal of the permanent ban shall only occur if all organizers are satisfied there has been a total change in that person’s behavior and an acknowledgement of their wrongdoing, and an understanding of how their actions harmed people
    • Should an attendee do any of the following acts during their time at camp, it will result in an immediate permanent ban and having to leave the event immediately:
      • Sexual assault
      • An act that intentionally puts the life of another attendee at risk 

In such cases- the ban is not eligible for being re-examined. These actions are serious and will be taken seriously by the TOMKAT board.

Procedure:

  • Notifying TOMKAT
    • If an issue occurs, TOMKAT needs to be notified in order for something to be done. An individual will never be penalized for bringing an issue, no matter who it is about (including board members). If organizers do not know about an issue, it cannot be fixed.
    • At Camp:
      • While organizers are often handling dozens of things simultaneously at camp, we do not want any issues to fall through the cracks. We need to make sure all incidents are not forgotten by us in the craziness of camp and can be dealt with. To accomplish this, we need a written record created.
        • To report an incident at camp, please either
          • Find an organizer and create a report with them (an email to the TOMKAT account) or
          • Email the TOMKAT account directly or
          • Use the box paper provided. Keep one copy for yourself. The box will be checked at least once a day by organizers.  
    • Not at camp
      • If you are not at camp, please either email TOMKAT directly or, directly with an organizer, have them create an email. There must be a written record as we do not want things to slip through the cracks.
  • Investigation
    • We will check our records to see what prior issues the person in question has had in the past.
    • TOMKAT may need to speak to you to find out pertinent details of the incident. We may want to speak with others who were present or involved. We want to make sure we know the full scope and therefore deal with it in the appropriate manner. 
    • TOMKAT will speak with the attendee and they will have a chance to give their side of the incident.- the identity of any persons involved in a complaint will not be revealed to that person unless the complainant’s consent is given.
  • Discussion and implementation of Actions
    • Two organizers will have a discussion with the offending party. We will discuss the incident, the issues surrounding it, and the action TOMKAT has decided to take.
  • Follow Up
    • TOMKAT will issue an official email to the individual with the following:
      • An overview of the issue
      • Overview of the discussion with them
      • Action Taken
    • TOMKAT will also contact the injured party to inform them of the action(s) taken (example: The person who physically attacked you at camp has been permanently banned) and let community leaders know about serious incidents.
    • TOMKAT will have a report of the incident, the investigation, discussion, and action implemented in their records. Anytime an issue is reported about an individual, these records will help us see if there is a pattern of problematic behaviour.