Harassment Prevention in the Workplace
Workplace harassment involves making unwelcome comments or inappropriate actions toward a coworker based upon the individual's race, age, color, disability, sex, religion or any other personal characteristic as protected by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Some employers fail to understand the importance of maintaining a no harassment policy in the workplace. Harassment issues can lead to expensive lawsuits filed against the company. It is essential for employers to take the proper steps in preventing legal issues and providing a comfortable, pleasant working environment for all employees.
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Develop a Written Policy
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A business must compile a written harassment prevention policy that outlines in detail the definition and types of workplace harassment, how to report an incident of harassment to the employer, and the procedures that take place after an incident has been reported. Upon being hired by the company, all employees should receive a copy of this policy and provide their signature, indicating that they have read it and understood its contents.
Provide Employee Training
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Employees should be gathered together periodically to be reminded of the company's strict policy on harassment of any kind. At these meetings, it is beneficial to show videos or host a speaker to tackle harassment issues and discuss why it does not belong in the workplace. The seriousness of the matter needs to be heard loud and clear by all employees.
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Provide Managers Training
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All department managers of a company need to attend meetings that train them further in how to properly handle a harassment issue, ways to keep an eye out for possible impending problems and effective enforcement of the company's harassment policy. Many companies have managers take part in role-playing sessions. A host speaker selects two managers to play the parts of the co-workers, while another manager plays himself and must demonstrate how he would handle the particular situation being played out in front of him. The host follows up by discussing what the manager did right, what he did wrong and how he could have done some things differently. It is part of a manager's duty to keep order in the workplace, so more in-depth training for them is helpful.
Protect Employees
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The company should provide a list of various go-to persons with whom to file a workplace harassment complaint. If the worker knows one of the managers is good friends with the particular co-worker who has allegedly committed harassment, he can simply go to a different person on the list. Employers need to make their workers feel free to report any incidents without worry of receiving any retaliation for filing a complaint. If they feel scared to file a valid complaint, conditions can worsen and eventually result in a lawsuit.
Investigate Complaints
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After a complaint is filed, the company must conduct a thorough, fair investigation. The person filing the complaint, the accused co-worker or boss and any possible witnesses must be interviewed individually. The findings from all interviews and any video or documents that have been obtained concerning the investigation must be completely documented. After reviewing all documentation, the investigator must come to a reasonable conclusion and recommend what action, if any, should be taken. If the accused worker decides to sue the company later on, this documentation detailing the entire investigation can be very crucial to the case.
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