Hollywood is not the only place where men are being called out for sexual harassment. There are huge spike in corporate complaints as well. Reports of harassment claims are so high, it could take them years.YEARS to get to them all!
. Obviously some of these claims are true. Men in power have been getting away with a lot over the years. Now, those same men are getting nervous.
Today a woman came forward about someone she had repeatedly been harrassed by, And guess what she had a photo of? At the last second before the photo was taken at their Christmas party he reached up and grabbed her breast! Click! Ha Ha... the jokes on you Bud!
But what about a small company?
What if your HR rep, or office manager is a relative of one of those managers or company owners?
How about women in the military?
Or... an Independent contractor in a Real Estate Office?
Are you going to report abuse? Probably not because of the fear of retaliation. That's a reason a lot of women don't come forward, even in large companies. So, what can you do? Yeah you could always switch companies, but that just leaves the door open for that person to prey on someone new.
- Have training in place, not only for managers, but also for employees! All should know what is appropriate in the workplace.
- Have a ZERO TOLERANCE policy for Harassment and Discrimination in the workplace. Period.
- ALL claims should be treated seriously and conduct a thorough investigation.
- Take action, such as suspensions, as soon as a problem comes to light.
- Make sure there is no retaliation when someone reports a problem.
- Is there a 3rd party to take complaints so the employees feel safe?
- Be consistent in your actions. Don't fire a lower level manager and keep an executive guilty of the same issue. You'll only get sued for that.
These are just suggesstions but it's a start right?
Dealing with Harassment right now is a delicate matter right now. Make sure you are prepared to handle it appropriately to keep you out of court. It might be a good topic for your first of the year staff meeting.
** Men may not always know when they'v'e crossed that line and it may vary from woman to woman, so it is up to us to let you know when you have crossed that boundary. The mere statement "I'm uncomfortable or not comfortable with that action or that language" is enough to put you on notice. Any further action on your part is now deliberate.
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