Prevent the Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
Nearly everyone knows that Sexual harassment in the
workplace is illegal. But not everyone knows exactly what constitutes
sexual harassment, and what employers can do to prevent it. Let’s review the
legal definition of sexual harassment, and then take a look at some tips for
employers on preventing sexual harassment in the workplace.
Employers have an obligation to prevent Sexual
harassment of women at workplace. If it can be shown that the employer
knew or should have known that the Harassment was occurring and they did not take all reasonable actions to stop
it, then the employer can be held liable for an individual’s actions. Here are
some tips for employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace:
- Create
and communicate a clear antiharassment policy including
anti-retaliation components. Get legal advice on this policy to ensure it
is complete and that it complies with all federal, state, and local laws.
Once complete, ensure that your policy is in the employee handbook and
that every employee has a copy.
- Conduct
sexual harassment training and retraining for everyone,
especially all supervisors and managers, on at least an annual basis.
Everyone in the organization should understand what sexual harassment is
and what to do if it occurs. (Note: in some states this training is
mandatory.)
- Ensure
managers and supervisors understand their obligation to maintain zero
tolerance for
harassment in the workplace.
- Monitor
emails and other electronic communications to scan for harassing content. Monitor behaviour too.
It is important as an employer to be on the lookout for inappropriate behaviour
and stop it right away.
- Ensure
employees know their options if they find themselves in such a situation. Employees should know
that they have the right to request the behaviour to stop (and they should
do so if possible). But employees should also know what to do next if they
don’t feel safe asking the person or people involved to stop, or if doing
so does not stop the unwanted behaviour.
- Clearly
define the process to submit a complaint, including a process for
situations where the direct supervisor can be bypassed if necessary.
- Define
clear consequences for such behaviour and consistently apply these when
harassing behaviour is discovered.
- Have
a clear process for investigating any complaint of harassment. If a complaint comes
in, look into it immediately and, if necessary, take steps to ensure the behaviour
stops while the investigation is ongoing. Take every complaint seriously.
For more
information about Harassment
at work visit on dimenzion3.com
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