Sexual harassment in the work place is not a new phenomenon; it has been in existence for as long as business organizations have been in existence. Some employees are being or have been coerced or intimidated into granting sexual gratification to colleagues or superiors in exchange for one favour or the other. Some have come out to speak about it while others cannot /have not.
According to Kate Jenkins the Sex Discrimination Commissioner for Australia, “the global conversation about sexual harassment and the #MeToo movement has exposed the true prevalence of the problem and the harm it causes to individuals, workplaces and society” Check out this site for more info on the #MeToo movement: https://www.globalfundforwomen.org/
In this article, we will discuss how employers can uphold best HR practises by training their staff for the prevention of sexual harassment in the workplace.
What Employers Can Do To Prevent Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
There are a number of things that employers can do to prevent this menace in the organization and they include the following:-
Leadership Training
Organizations that uphold HR best practises train their supervisors and managers constantly. These leaders are made to understand that they are at the fore of the fight against workplace intimidation of any kind. But sadly, some managers and supervisors do not have the skills to prevent or handle these issues.
This is why it is important to equip them with practical and specific skills that will enable them to communicate the policies of the organization and also uphold them. Additionally, they will be able to intervene to avert the escalation of these issues should they arise.
Conduct Periodical Workplace Reviews
Too many employers assume that all is well because no employee has filed an official complaint. This is actually wrong because research has proven that many people who are sexually harassed do not speak up. Some of them just bottle up their emotions and then explode at a point or time that will be very detrimental to the organization.
The best practise for employers is to have periodic reviews; maybe quarterly or however they decide to do it. You can either conduct anonymous surveys or invite impartial professionals to speak one on one with every employee. This can be a part of sexual harassment training sessions.
Provide a safe environment where every member of staff can review the culture of the organization without fear of retribution. Some organizations pay lip service to workplace review and wonder why they do not get the desired result. No member of staff will dare to speak up again if they get a whiff of backlash when they speak up. That is why creating a safe talking space is very important.
Upstander Training
An upstander is someone who stands up for a cause or to defend another from bullying or harassment. Most people in society today have an unspoken creed of ‘mind your business’ ‘if it doesn’t hurt you, it doesn’t concern you’. But that is a culture that perpetuates wrong doing.
As a best practise compliant company, it behoves the employer or management to conduct regular upstander training. There is the need to educate every employee to always speak up and stop being bystanders. This will help foster healthy relationships between staff where everyone is looking out for the other.
Applying A Risk Compliance Approach To Employees That Are At Risk
There are situations where employees may be at risk of behaving inappropriately. These situations include traveling with a colleague or subordinate, office parties where alcohol is served or the use of social apps. There is need for training to help your staff know what to do in such situations.
Furthermore, there should be policies and organizational values that are clearly spelt out for every staff to abide by. There should also be safeguards put in place to protect the most vulnerable in the organization.
General Sexual Harassment Training
Truth be told, if all the above is done without periodic general trainings for everyone in the organization, the result might not be as all-encompassing as desired. Both employers and employees should be involved in these training sessions. Employees should see that their employers are interested in upholding best practises as it involves the issue of sexual harassment and other issues that create toxicity in the work place.
This will definitely create the right workplace culture that’s desired and improve all round productivity. Click here for tips on how to create the right workplace culture.
Conclusion
The end goal of every business is to make profit; however, there are factors that can militate against that. One of such factors is sexual harassment in the work place. In this article, we have shared how employers can mitigate this issue to ensure that they have the level of productivity they desire.
We believe that the tips shared in this article will go a long way in helping employers create a healthy working environment at all times.
