Three weeks after it initiated a company-wide investigation into sexual misconduct, Vice Media said in a memo Thursday night that it taken disciplinary actions, including the termination of three employees.
The employees were not named in the memo, attributed to Vice Media global human resources officer Susan Tohyama. But their behavior, the memo says, ranged “from verbal and sexual harassment to other behavior that is inconsistent with our policies, our values, and the way in which we believe colleagues should work together.”
On Nov. 17, Vice suspended executive producer Jason Mojica after the publication of a Daily Beast article that described an allegation of sexual harassment against former L.A. bureau chief Kaj Larsen. While both Larsen, and his accuser, Phoebe Barghouty, are no longer with the company, the article fingered Mojica as contributing to a broader culture of workplace discomfort.
Following that action, Vice instigated an internal investigation into workplace harassment and established a new “Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Board” with membership that includes feminist icon Gloria Steinem.
In Thursday night’s memo, Tohyama emphasized the “confidentiality of the process” it said is “necessary to protect all those who wish to bring allegations to [her] and to create a fair, safe and inclusive environment for all employees.” She also promised Vice Media employees that new procedures have been established to investigate complaints, created with the approval of the Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Board.
Tohyama also said it was important to her, and the advisory board, that they “investigate complaints in a manner consistent with the company’s zero tolerance policy.”
The memo also describes some of Vice’s new procedures in detail. See the full memo here.