Does an anti-harassment policy create a culture free from harassment?  Most people would say, "No, a policy does not create the culture" but many organizations still expect the policy to drive behavior.  Some organizations take the next step and provide training to remind employees to treat each other appropriately.  Few less expect (or equip) their leaders to check in with employees ensuring there is no harassment occurring.

A recent report from the EEOC showed that most interventions have had little impact in the rates of workplace harassment claims and that harassment in all forms is still a large problem in both public and private sector workplaces.  They offer a number of recommendations to reduce workplace harassment covering leadership and accountability, policies and procedures, various types of training and other forms of education, outreach to youth and others in the community, and reinforcing expectations of all employees (especially "bystanders") to eliminate the tolerance of harassing behavior.

Harassment includes sexual harassment as well as harassment directed at employees because of their race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, national origin, color, pregnancy, veteran status, and genetic information (in Michigan it also includes marital status, height, and weight).  These are the characteristics that are legally protected from harassment but there are other forms of inappropriate behavior that could set the stage for more severe behavior if not addressed.

A challenge in eliminating inappropriate behavior is that it is part of the culture in many organizations.  The Employers' Association works with many different industries and different sized organizations located in different parts of the community and we know that this challenge cuts across all variables.  Some of our members have been diligent in sending and reinforcing a clear message that harassing conduct is inappropriate.  We see others, however, that expect employees to act maturely and professionally but do not follow that up with specific behaviors that are (and are not) acceptable.

The good news is that most workplaces do not have a lot of harassment.  The bad news is that it only takes a little harassment to have a significant negative impact. The impacts can be things like decreased teamwork and communication, decreased productivity and creativity, increased turnover and sick time, increased accidents, damaged reputation, and potentially high legal costs.  We also know that organizations working to eliminate harassment see the flip side of all the negative impacts.  Addressing harassment in the workplace benefits an organization financially, professionally and within the community.

Organizations should not wait for complaints to come in - they should be proactive in assessing the environment employees work in.  That can be done through engagement/satisfaction surveys, coaching and 1:1 meetings, open door policies, etc.  It is estimated that about 90% of employees who are harassed do not report it - they suffer in silence, tell their co-workers, call in sick, quit (or stay but put forth no discretionary contribution), etc.  Leaders need to actively and deliberately ensure that no one is being harassed and check in with employees periodically.

Providing training is an important component of reminding employees of both their rights and responsibilities to ensure a workplace free of harassment and other inappropriate behavior.  A training done every few years does not send a consistent message, however, to the employees who joined the organization two years ago and have not yet received the message.  Leaders need additional training to spot and address harassing behavior as well as setting the tone for how employees interact with each other in the workplace - and to establish the communication chain that can be trusted to report issues and concerns.

An important consideration with training is the expectation of what happens after the training.  Keep in mind that when people are reminded of their right to work in a workplace free of harassment they may come forward to tell the organization it is not living up to its promise.  There may be more complaints after a training is provided.  In addition, a training that tells people what they cannot do is only half of the equation.  Employees should also learn how to respectfully interact with each other.  This is why The Employers' Association has begun to encourage businesses to partner training regarding inclusive behaviors and attitudes as an important component to a productive, safe, and engaging culture.  Connecting what should not occur (harassment) with what should occur (inclusion) encourages the culture to shift in a direction that benefits everyone.

If you are interested in learning more about how TEA can help assess your culture by reviewing your policies, employee engagement/satisfaction surveys, investigations, coaching, and Workplace Harassment Awareness programs and Workplace Inclusion programs please contact Jason Reep at jreep@teagr.org or 616-698-1167.

Reminder - the EEO-1 Survey is now open and is due by September 30, 2016.