17 advice for anti-harassment training



The recent release of the Equal Opportunities Commission (EEOC) on sexual harassment should not be caused by a collective yawn. On the contrary, the report contains the seeds of great ideas to fight against the harassment of all the bands, including that based on race, sex, national origin and religion.

The president of EEOC, Jenny Yang, first announced the creation of a selected working group on the study of harassment in the workplace at the beginning of last year, and her message was then simple: we made a lot of progress, but the problem persists.

Quick advance until June, which was the 30th anniversary of the recognition of the Supreme Court that sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. After more than a year of study, including numerous public audiences, the commissioners of the Chai Feldblum and Victoria Lipnic Their report.

One key aspect of the study is the importance of supervisor training and management. Let us focus on the following 17 tips for upgrading your training which are based not only on specific recommendations from EEOC commissioners, but also on my own advice. (Note: While I served the working group, I am not talking about the EEOC or the working group.)

Audio interview: Jonathan Segal Listen to lawyer Jonathan Segal talking more about the EEOC report that prompted this article and what it means for HR.

1. Make sure the training is interactive and facilitated by a qualified coach. If your employees are passive participants, training will not reach its full potential. Ideally, training should be live. If this is not possible for cost reasons or because employees are scattered geographically, you can consider an online alternative, but it should have an interactive component.

2. Confirm that support comes from the highest levels. Without the approval of senior managers, training will probably be considered a simple “check” exercise. Managers must attend the event and ideally provide opening or fence comments. Managers must clearly indicate that everyone will be held responsible for compliance with the requirements covered by training.

3. Clarify that the training must be followed seriously. The purpose of this exercise is not simply to educate supervisors; It is to help them keep their jobs. Clearly make the employer, like the courts, has supervisors at a higher level than other employees.

4. Put the emphasis on commercial risks to engage or tolerate harassment behaviors. These risks include the loss of productivity, the lower retention of employees and the tarnished reputation of the employer. In other words, harassment is bad for business.

5. provide specific examples of unacceptable behavior rather than making general declarations. The examples must be personalized to resonate in your workplace. The canned training is a waste of time of everyone.

6. Focus on risk factors that increase the probability that harassment is tolerated. These include a homogeneous workforce and workers who depend on customer advice and may be afraid of expressing themselves. Supervisor training must focus on how these risk factors can increase harassment potential so that managers can solve problems before they occur.

7. involve what is unacceptable in relation to what is illegal. Employers do not want to suggest that behavior is illegal when it will not be. For example, in most cases, a comment is not usable. You also do not want to involve that unacceptable behavior is ok simply because it is not sufficiently important or omnipresent to violate the law.

(Resource of SHRM members: Sexual harassment policy and complaint / investigation procedure))

8. Describe both serious and subtle examples of harassment. If employers do not include the least obvious examples, supervisors can define harassment behavior too closely. On the other hand, if the blatant behaviors are excluded, managers may not address what they cannot imagine anyone even if it actually takes place.

9. Address illegal harassment in all its forms. Harassment can be based on the race, ethnicity or religion of a person. And don't forget that gender -based harassment, even if it is not a sexual nature, is also contrary to the law.

10. Provide supervisors on how to respond in the moment. If supervisors do not know what to say from the very moment when an employee brings them harassment, they can say something unhappy like “it does not look like Mark”. Simple appointment: supervisors should say: “Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention. We take them very seriously. ”

11. Underline that supervisors cannot promise absolute confidentiality. Managers must report all HR complaints in the event of a course. However, if they are not informed of this stage in advance and they accept the request of an employee to keep a confidential complaint, then they cannot say it, despite the legal and commercial risks that go with an opinion and doing nothing.

12. Train supervisors to respond proactively to unacceptable driving. Managers who see, intend to or otherwise become aware of the harassment behavior must follow up, even in the absence of a complaint. To be silent is tolerate. This is why the EEOC recommends that the so -called passers -by training will be integrated into supervision education efforts. This type of training is based on the premise that witnesses or other people who become aware of the harassment behavior (passers -by) play a key role in the elimination of harassment.

13. Involve non-replication. Fear of reprisals is the main reason why employees do not raise concerns when they should. Employers must define reprisals as largely as the law in terms of which is protected (not only complainants) and what is prohibited (not only discipline and liberation). Examples of other prohibited reprisal actions include the change in the amount of work given to employees, the displacement of the nature of the assigned tasks and the exclusion of workers from key meetings. Underline that reprisals of any kind against a person who reports or testifies to harassment will be welcomed with immediate and proportionate corrective measures.

14. Provide civility training. Even if coarse or Invil behavior is not illegal unless it relates to a protected group, incivility is the bridge of harassment behavior. Consequently, the EEOC recommends that employers have the formation of civility. Admittedly, the formation of civility can create problems with the National Labor Relations Board. But for supervisors who are not covered by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), such training can be infused not only in anti-harassment training, but also to training in yield management without the risk of rape the NLRA, if it is properly structured.

15. Use humor carefully. Appropriate humor can sometimes alleviate tensions so that participants are more open to training, but it is very important not to minimize the seriousness of the problem. According to my experience, humor is better used to make fun of those who defend inappropriate behavior: “He really thought that if he called her at home to share her lubricate feelings for her, it was not harassment. Maybe he should be dismissed for harassment and stupidity. ”

16. Evaluate and reassess. Provoke specific comments on what resonated with the employees and what they want to know more. Discuss behavior that is not considered harassment, as a style of non -discriminatory but difficult management.

17. Transmit that the solution is not to avoid those who are different from us. Trying to avoid harassment complaints by completely avoiding certain groups of employees may constitute illegal discrimination. Provide specific examples on how supervisors can engage in mentorship and promote social inclusion in a diversified workforce.

Jonathan A. Segal is associated with Duane Morris in Philadelphia and New York. Follow it on Twitter @jonathan_hr_law.

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