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Following Rep. Eric Swalwell’s resignation, a group representing more than 1,500 congressional staffers called for sweeping changes to how Congress handles sexual harassment and misconduct complaints.
Congressional staffers say Congress is failing to protect staff from sexual abuse and misconduct.
In a letter to house and senate leaders, the Congressional Progressive Staff Association, which represents more than 1,500 House and Senate employees, is urging leaders to change how harassment complaints are handled on Capitol Hill.
Sonoma State Political Science Professor David Mccuan says the proposals target some of the biggest barriers to reporting harassment.
“This moment is different,” he said. “The last really big congressional staffers piece of legation that passed was in 1995.”
The letter follows recent misconduct allegations involving East Bay Congressman Eric Swalwell, who has denied the claims, as well as the resignation of former Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales after admitting to an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide.
The group is calling for independent investigations, expanded legal support for staff, more funding for the office of congressional workplace rights, and better education about how to report misconduct.
“One of the changes that the group wants to talk about is the changes is the statue of limitations which is currently 180 days. Congress doesn’t meet that often and its often gone or out of session and if you are a victim of some type of assault or harassment you may be uncertain as to what to do,” McCuan said.
The letter also calls for extending that reporting deadline to at least one year, saying the current timeline forces some employees to decide whether to take legal action before they’re ready.
The group says recent misconduct allegations have exposed major flaws in the current system.
The staff association says, “congressional staff should never have to choose between their safety and their careers in public service.”
“If implemented, they would do a few things,” McCuan said. “They would take things we see in the private sector, at a university or many public sectors that protect workers and protect their rights and put together a process that makes more sense. That could improve the environment and that could go a long way in terms of changing the tenor or tone.
The association says the law reforms would create a fairer process for staff while helping Congress retain employees at a time of record staff turnover. The group is calling for ranking members to take this up before the august recess and if not the beginning of the next Congress in January.