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How to Prevent Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
An employer has a legal obligation
to protect employees from becoming victims of sexual
harassment in the workplace. The legal and moral issues
can be murky but the solution is not; preventing sexual
harassment is preferable to dealing with its presence.
It is in the best interest of the employer to know what
the legal obligations are as well as what other steps
are recommended for preventing offenses. A charge of
sexual harassment will harm more than the victim - it
will create a tense environment among all employees
by affecting group morale.
WHAT CAN AN EMPLOYER DO TO PREVENT
SEXUAL HARASSMENT?
Learning about the legal definitions
of sexual harassment and implementing a clear policy
about what is considered sexual harassment and how it
will be dealt with is the first step to preventing it.
Staying aware of conditions in the workplace
and getting feedback from employees will help in creating
effective policies. That means ensuring that pornographic
pictures are not permitted, sexually explicit comments
and jokes are not told and guidelines about what is
considered sexual harassment are posted.
Managers and employees should receive
periodic training about what constitutes sexual harassment
and what procedure should be followed if an individual
needs to file a complaint. It should be clear to all
employees that sexual harassment is a serious charge
and that serious repercussions (including firing) will
be administered against violators.
Dealing with complaints quickly and
responsively is important. Let your employees know they
have a right to work in an environment that is free
of sexual harassment.
WHAT ARE THE LEGAL ISSUES?
The legal definitions and stipulations
about sexual harassment in the workplace are listed
on the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
website at www.eeoc.gov.
Sexual harassment includes unwanted
sexual advances, requests, words and actions that affect
the employment or work performance of the victim or
creates an intimidating or offensive work environment.
The circumstances under which sexual
harassment charges can be filed include (but is not
limited to) the following:
"In cases of sexual harassment,
the victim as well as the harasser may be male or female.
The victim does not have to be of the opposite sex.
The harasser can be the victim's supervisor, an agent
of the employer, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker,
or a non-employee. The victim does not have to be the
person harassed, but could be anyone affected by the
offensive conduct. Unlawful sexual harassment may occur
without economic injury to or firing of the victim."
(Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, "Facts
About Sexual Harassment, " 1997)
Each case must be dealt with on an individual
basis and no form of retaliation can be made against
the employee who reports sexual harassment.
While you may or may not be legally
required to train your managers and employees about
sexual harassment, it is in the best interest of everyone
to do so.
State laws may differ but offering education
will make the issues clear to employees and teach managers
how to handle complaints. If a lawsuit is made the employer
can provide proof that steps were taken to prevent sexual
harassment and educate employees.
HOW SHOULD CHARGES OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT
BE DEALT WITH?
Employers should take charges seriously,
creating an investigation quickly and dealing with violators
appropriately. The company policy about sexual harassment
should be created in advance so that managers know the
appropriate action to take if complaints are filed.
If the situation is not dealt with quickly
the employee may take the issue to the EEOC or local
agencies that enforce these laws. Having record of your
policies and the actions taken will be considered in
such an event.
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