When it comes to best practices, there is no better one than that of operating a work environment that is conducive to a safe and healthy enterprise. Having said this, even the best workplaces have had complaints brought against them. To prevent this, there are several things one can do.
Sexual Harassment Talks
Even in this day and age, there are some people who do not understand what sexual harassment is and how it effects people’s work and home lives.
The truth is, when a person is harassed in this manner, they are demeaned in a way that hurts the company as well as the individual and his or her family.
By having a discussion with new hires (and old) about this topic, with true stories of how harassment effects teams, complaints can be curbed because they will not occur.
Talks Should be led by Team Leaders
The best way to learn about a subject is to teach it. For this reason, the leaders in the organization would do well to study and teach on the subject.
In doing so, this person will learn about surprising statistics, such as that 20% of all women will be attacked in their lifetime, and facts like what constitutes sexual harassment.
Empower Employees to Stop Harassment Before it Starts
Sometimes harassment occurs because someone feels powerless or others feel invincible. You can empower team members by giving them a voice and a process by which to stop potential harassment. Doing so will prevent issues that come up from becoming serious problems.
The process can start with the person telling another that his joke, comment, or contact makes the other person uncomfortable. The next step could be noting via email when it happens again. Following that, a meeting with a supervisor.
By taking control of this matter, instead of the other way around, you can have a company that focuses on making money and serving people, as opposed to settling complaints – interoffice or legally.
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