NBA Commissioner, Adam Silver, announced last month that the league was setting up a confidential hotline for league and team employees to report improper behavior in the workplace. The league made the announcement in a memo sent to all of its 30 teams.
The NBA’s action came in the wake of Sports Illustrated’s damning report that portrayed the Dallas Mavericks as “a picture of a corporate culture rife with misogyny and predatory sexual behavior.”
In Silver’s introduction of the new hotline, he reminded the teams of the NBA’s commitment to providing employees a safe and inclusive work environment. He went on to reiterate the NBA’s core values, respect and integrity.
Silver, in his memo to all franchise owners, team presidents, general managers, HR directors, and general counsels said that both the league office and the teams should be aware of the following:
Compliance professionals know all too well that a hotline itself means little. The manner by which the hotline functions is critical. The announcement of a hotline is like a statement of intent that raises expectations. In fact, the NBA’s announcement raises a few questions, some are included below:
It is likely that many of the above questions have already been addressed by league officials. But the key question is this: Is the NBA and its board of governors just launching a hotline or it is committed to developing, implementing and maintaining an effective compliance program for league employees and the employees of all of its 30 teams? Remember, a hotline by itself means little.
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