Formal Complaint Procedure

USA Weightlifting Complaint Procedure Outline

Complaints regarding Staff, Programs, Operations or Other Operational Complaint

A complaint regarding the above issues should be made to usaw@usaweightlifting.org.

Complaints regarding Safe Sport (Sexual Abuse) should be made directly to the US Center for SafeSport, and the process followed is described by documents at www.uscenterforsafesport.org a link directly to their reporting page is below: https://uscenterforsafesport.org/report-a-concern/

Response and Resolution Process

Complaints regarding Safe Sport (Emotional & Physical Abuse; violations of the MAAPP) may be made either to the US Center for SafeSport or to USA Weightlifting. The US Center for SafeSport may refer these cases to USA Weightlifting for adjudication and the process followed will be that of the US Center for SafeSport Code, applied by the USA Weightlifting Ethics Committee and USA Weightlifting Judicial Committee.

https://uscenterforsafesport.org/report-a-concern/ (US Center for SafeSport)

https://goo.gl/forms/CaMOLmaduwSuxxHk2 (USA Weightlifting)

Complaints regarding the Code of Conduct, Code of Ethics, International Team Code of Conduct or other Ethical Related Matters

Complaints regarding these matters should be made to USA Weightlifting’s Ethics Committee, using the following form. The Ethics Committee is made up of four independent and disinterested individuals and one Elite Athlete Representative.

https://goo.gl/forms/CaMOLmaduwSuxxHk2

Complaints regarding Doping Control

Allegations, Intelligence or Complaints in the area of Doping Control are the exclusive jurisdiction of the US Anti-Doping Agency. You can report an issue to the US Anti-Doping Agency, inclusive of international doping control concerns, to: https://www.usada.org/athletes/playclean/

Complaints regarding potential USA Weightlifting SafeSport Policy and/or U.S. Center for SafeSport Code against a US Official by a non-US citizen while overseas https://forms.gle/ZyQDqfxVjjt7SFdy9

Administrative Grievance against USA Weightlifting

If you have an administrative grievance against USA Weightlifting, the detailed process is applied by the Judicial Committee as described in the USA Weightlifting bylaws – these complaints do not follow the ethics process below. You make your report here: https://goo.gl/forms/CaMOLmaduwSuxxHk2

Process for Complaints (save Administrative Grievance Complaints) received by USA Weightlifting

Complaints will be received by the USA Weightlifting Membership Department and forwarded to the Chief Executive Officer.

The CEO will file the complaint in the USA Weightlifting Ethics log and provide the complaint and full documentation, regardless of the CEO’s opinion of the case, to the Ethics Independent Chair. The Exception is where the Complaint is against or names the CEO, in which case the most senior individual in the Leadership team under the membership track will play this role. If that individual is named in the complaint, the next most senior individual under membership will do so and so on. As an alternative, an individual may raise a complaint directly to the CEO.

USA Weightlifting may make a complaint against a member, it must do so under the name of an employee, usually the CEO on behalf of the organization.

The Ethics Committee will, independent of the staff, evaluate the facts presented by the complainant. The Ethics Committee will then liaise with the CEO (or designee as above) to provide any further information, assist with any investigation in order that sufficient information be provided to the committee by all parties. However, at no time, unless called as a witness, will a member of staff be present for the deliberations of the Ethics (or Judicial) Committees.

In the event that the Committee interviews an individual, that individual may always have an advocate present and in the case of a minor, the interview must have a parent or legal guardian present for the duration of the interview.

The committee will establish given the facts if there is a violation and what sanction is recommended, if any. A paper will be submitted from the Ethics Committee to the Judicial Committee, USA Weightlifting CEO, USA Weightlifting Board of Directors, USA Weightlifting Outside Counsel and the parties involved in the event of violation being found.

In the event a benefit of membership is to be withdrawn, the individual who is to be sanctioned or have a benefit removed will have the opportunity to be heard in front of the Judicial Committee who have the final jurisdiction on the length and severity of the sanction.

A case may only be dismissed by the majority vote of the Ethics Committee, and the authorization of the Chair of the Ethics Committee.

The USA Weightlifting Board of Directors may not find differently to the Committees but reserves the right to ask a Committee to look again at a case.

A reasonable expectation from complaint to resolution is six months or less.

It is expected that individuals respond to Ethics Committee or Judicial Committee within one calendar week. An individual may ask the relevant committee for an extension to the response time, granted at the sole discretion of the committee concerned and for no time longer than four weeks.

Findings of the Ethics & Judicial Committees, per the USA Weightlifting bylaws, can be found under the Sanctioned Members tab of the USA Weightlifting website.

Investigation and Mediation

USA Weightlifting’s Judicial Committee, by a majority vote, may engage in a mediation between two parties to reach an amicable and agreed solution. Such mediation must occur in writing or by recorded conference call. Mediation is available at the sole discretion of the Judicial Committee. 

USA Weightlifting reserves the right to appoint an independent investigator or investigators at the Ethics Committee stage. Reporting and Responding parties can reasonably expect to have an investigation close within 90 days.