22 Oct Avoid Harassment Charges Through Training
Training is the first line of defense in keeping your company out of the harassment limelight. However, harassment training can be a slippery slope because you want to show what constitutes improper and inacceptable behavior, but you don’t want to offend trainees while you are doing it. Here is one recommended training approach from our friends at BLR:
Try some quick statements and scenarios and see if trainees can see what the problems might be with the statements or behaviors described below.
1. As a manager, if I observe behavior that might be harassment, I wait until I’m sure it’s illegal. When I’m sure it is, I discipline the perpetrator right away.
Managers should not try to figure out whether behavior is illegal. (In fact, it’s not a good idea to talk in those terms—an e-mail that talks about illegal harassment is a pretty nice piece of evidence for a suing employee’s attorney.)
Typically, long before the behavior is illegal it‘s inappropriate for the workplace, so managers and supervisors should focus on whether behavior is inappropriate and contrary to policy, and whether it violates the organization’s values and principles. As soon as it is inappropriate or contrary to values, act.
2. Hey, I know Gerry gets teased a little, but if people can’t take a little good-natured kidding, what kind of team members are they?
Behavior that is kidding to one person may be offensive to the recipient and/or observers. Harassment isn’t mitigated by the motives or intent of the offender; what counts is the impact on the person offended.
“Kidding” and “just teasing’ cases are particularly problematic, because the recipient may appear to be taking the teasing in good humor. But later, on the witness stand, he or she will say, “I was going along because I feared I would lose my job.”
The bottom line is that teasing that involves sex, race, religion, or any protected characteristic is dangerous. It just won’t ever be funny in letters 6 inches high in front of the jury.
3. Sexual harassment usually involves intimate touching or other manner of physical contact.
Intimate touching and other physical contacts are an egregious form of harassment, and, in fact, may be criminal behavior, but harassment may also occur from innuendo, sexual talk, inappropriate jokes, and other offensive behavior that creates a hostile working environment.
4. A superior says a subordinate who turns down invitations for a date will get a poor job evaluation.
This is classic “quid pro quo” or tangible employment action harassment. It is never acceptable.
5. Manager to subordinate “I think we’d be looking at a raise situation if we could share a room on an upcoming business trip.
Again, this is tangible employment action harassment.
6. A superior blocks a promotion for a subordinate who has firmly stated that the superior’s sexual remarks were unwelcome.
This is another example of potential tangible employment action harassment. Of course, the superior can argue that he or she blocked the promotion for a good business reason, but that reason had better be well documented and beyond questioning. And there could still be a hostile environment.
7. The company’s policies on harassment state that co-workers can’t date.
This seems like a great, albeit draconian, solution to a potential problem, but most organizations find that it’s unworkable. It’s also difficult to police. The important thing is to train supervisors and managers about:
The potential for harassment if either party has any business power over the other.
The potential for a retaliation claim if the parties break up.
8. As long as people don’t complain about my kidding and my pinching, I don’t have to worry.
Sometimes, employees will seem to be going along with inappropriate behavior, and it is true that behavior must be “unwelcome” to be harassment. Unfortunately, in court people who seemed to be accepting will tell the jury that they had to go along so they could feed their young children. That’s not going to end well for the company.
9. I’ve been sleeping with my assistant, but we both enjoy it—it’s not a boss thing, it’s a love thing.
Unfortunately for the company, most relationships eventually break up, and that means the employee, if he or she suffers a negative employment action, can always claim that it was retaliation for breaking up the relationship.
And there’s another problem with subordinate dating–co-workers will tend to believe that the subordinate is getting special treatment. That’s bad for morale and could also result in a lawsuit.
10. Only supervisors can harass subordinates.
Generally, only supervisors and managers can exercise the power to engage in tangible employment action harassment, but any co-worker can create a hostile environment.
11. Our receptionist is attractive, and the delivery people tend to tease a little, well, a lot, but they’re not employees, so there’s nothing I can do about them.
If you allow a hostile environment to continue, even if created by an outsider, you are condoning harassment, and that is not going to be good. Management must take action, talking to the outsiders, and if necessary, to their management.
How can you eliminate harassment and retaliation in your organization? As with most things HR, the key to success is training, training, and more training. But who has the budget and time to organize a full-blown training program?
Good news from Prestige—we offer a full suite of training courses at no cost to you through our University of Prestige program. University of Prestigeis a ccomprehensive in-house learning and development program with over 50 courses encompassing a broad range of topics and best practices.
Contact your Prestige HR Business Partner for additional information or to arrange on-site, online or for video classes.