House creates subcommittee to address workplace respect issues

With a goal of ensuring that the House of Representatives is safe and respectful to employees, members and the public, a Subcommittee on Workplace Safety & Respect has been created.

"Discrimination and harassment have no place in the House," Speaker Kurt Daudt (R-Crown) said in a Wednesday statement. "This is a serious issue that requires serious examination by a formal committee. While we have taken steps to educate members and staff on discrimination and harassment, it is also critical to have a bipartisan group tasked with delivering recommendations so lawmakers can pass needed policy changes."

The group will be a subcommittee of the House Rules and Legislative Administration Committee. House Majority Leader Joyce Peppin (R-Rogers), the rules committee chair, will also chair the subcommittee.

"Creating a subcommittee allows this process to be transparent and inclusive so we can engage the public, and objective employment law professionals and other experts in the development of any policy changes,” Peppin said in the statement.

Members are scheduled to attend mandatory harassment training Feb. 21, the day after the 2018 session begins.

Amid allegations of sexual harassment, former Rep. Tony Cornish (R-Vernon Center) and former Sen. Dan Schoen (DFL-St. Paul Park) resigned from the Legislature in December. Special elections to fill the District 23B and Senate District 54 seats are scheduled Monday.