AVALON – Saying it is committed to maintaining a work environment free of intolerance, harassment and bullying, the borough has set boundaries for the interaction of the public with its employees.

The policy grew out of an incident witnessed by Borough Attorney Nicole Curio in which a member of the public sought information from an employee in a manner Curio felt lacked the normal civility that should accompany such interactions.

With the Borough Council’s approval, she led the development of the policy, which was presented to the council and passed unanimously at its April 9 meeting.

The policy states that when interacting with borough staff the public shall refrain from threats of harm, use of offensive language, disruption of borough operations, attempts at intimidation, harassment and unauthorized entry into restricted areas.

The policy encourages employees who experience such behavior to ask the individual to stop the behavior and, if necessary, enlist the assistance of a supervisor or administrator. Lacking availability of such assistance, the employee may direct the individual to leave public property.

The employee may notify a law enforcement officer if civility is not restored or the individual refuses to leave when asked to do so. Employees who are the target of or witnesses to such behavior are directed by the policy to report it to a supervisor.

Those who continue to violate the policy or show a pattern of uncivil behavior may be barred from certain borough properties at the discretion of the borough administrator.

A copy of the policy is embedded in the resolution authorizing it and is available from the borough clerk.

Contact the reporter, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.