In the workplace, employees are expected to work in cooperation to achieve organizational goals. Their interaction is expected to be open, constructive, and respectful, but in some cases, sexual harassment occurs. Sharing sexually-inappropriate images or sending suggestive letters are the examples of workplace sexual harassment, which cases absenteeism, low work effectiveness, stress, and other negative outcomes (Hersch, 2015). This paper aims to design a plan for a real-life situation, when a female employee reported about sexual harassment from her male colleague. The goal is to consider the case from the point of an HR manager and identify the points that should be taken into account while talking to both of them.
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines sexual harassment as “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment” (“Sexual harassment”, 2020). Based on this definition, it is possible to state that the male employee applied inappropriate behavior to his female colleague by recurrently asking her out on dates while she refused. The first point is an immediate response to this case to make sure that the complaining employee feels that she is listened to. The second step is to show that this person is safe from retaliation, stating that her decision to complain was correct (Hersch, 2015).
After that, the HR manager should ask the employee about the whole story, including any involves persons, circumstances, actions made and words said by the male employee, and other details. Some notes should be taken to document names, dates, and so on, which is important to investigate the case.
When all the details are clarified, the harassed employee should be assured that the case will be investigated, and misconduct would not be tolerated. Nagy and Curl-Nagy (2019) state that workplace cultural change should be promoted in companies that faced similar cases, which can be achieved by introducing sexual harassment and assault training. The complaining employee should be told that the organization would consider such training. In addition, it seems to be relevant to ask about the ways the employee may accept to resolve the incident. The HR manager can use open-ended questions to stimulate the conversation and understand the employee’s perspective.
In turn, the male employee accused of sexual harassment should be interviewed, using a respectful and listening approach. He should be notified about the complaint and asked to explain this incident. The HR manager can use a careful approach and avoid accusing him since it may lead to defensive behaviors. Instead, it is better to say that his co-worker feels uncomfortable and unsafe when he asks her to date repeatedly. After that, the workplace policies about intolerance to sexual harassment and its negative consequences should be clarified. The main goal of this conversation is to encourage the employee to understand that he was wrong and motivate him to learn to prevent similar behaviors in the future.
To conclude, sexual harassment conversations are challenging for HR managers and employees, but they are necessary to ensure a safe and welcoming workplace environment. The plan for talking to the female employee should include such points as safety, retaliation, training, and solution options. The HR manager should also approach the employee who was accused with respect, trying to clarify his actions and encourage future commitment to organizational policies. The discussed plans are expected to help in resolving the case and improving the overall workplace culture.
References
Hersch, J. (2015). Sexual harassment in the workplace. IZA World of Labor, 1-10.
Nagy, M. S., & Curl-Nagy, D. J. (2019). Workplace civility training: An antidote to traditional sexual harassment training. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 12(1), 93-95.
Sexual harassment. (2020). EEOC. Web.