A New Challenge In Protecting Your Business and Clients from Predators
The Youth Safe Sports Act focused us on learning about sex offenders. We learned how to recognize grooming behaviors in our instructors and volunteers, but recent events highlighted the potential risk our students’ parents represent.
A Studio had an experience which none of our training addressed. A student’s parent approached the owner of the Studio and said, “that man is on the sex offender registry.” The man they pointed out was the father of another student.
The Studio owner looped me and their attorney into a discussion, and at the end of it, there was still no easy, cut and dry solution. The sex offender’s parole officer said there was no restriction keeping the father out of the Studio. Just the opposite, the parole officer wanted this man going to as many of his daughter’s events as possible.
The only practical solution after a great deal of discussion was to disenroll the student from classes. The attorney warned that denying service could lead to a discrimination case.
It turns out this is a gray area. The law does not specify felons as a protected class under the anti-discrimination laws, but that does not prevent an angry, sex-offender parent from suing or venting frustration on social media.
I am asking each of you to think about how you would handle this situation in your Studio. Obviously, we cannot have a background check done for every parent that walks through the door, but each of you needs to know what your plan will be if you become aware of a sex offender entering your Studio.
There are a lot of abuse prevention training systems out there but the two we recommend for training are
- Abuse Prevention Systems
- Darkness to Light
Questions?
If you have questions about this newsletter, your insurance policy, or abuse prevention training recommendations for your business and employees please call or email us!
beth@blockins.net
1-800-225-0863
our martial arts insurance specialists:
andrew@blockins.net
steven@blockins.net
