Comments on: 9 ways to mess up harassment training

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Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:54:06 +0000

[...] 9 ways to mess up harassment training [...]

By: Keith Hamm, SPHR

Keith Hamm, SPHR — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:09:06 +0000

I do harassment training in orientations with new staff on their first day of work. I also do trainings to our managers and the staff as a group thoughout the year as refreshers. One of the things I stress is that harassment is based on impact, not intent, and that any employee who feels they may be experiencing harassment of any kind has a reporting path available to them within our policies. I make sure they all know that if they experience any situations that they think may be harassment – or any that even make them feel uncomfortable for any reason – that they can (and are expected to) come to me. The best trainings emphasize reporting to the appropriate party and making sure everyone knows that such reports will be taken seriously and acted upon. They may forget specifics of a training, but they must be made to remember who to go to if they have a problem and know they’ll be taken seriously.

By: DD

DD — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:05:59 +0000

We have tried to move from doing strictly harassment training to more of a Diversity approach. We start with talking about Harassment and the policy on Harassment, but then we tie that to how important it is for the whole organization to be thinking of Diversity and embracing differences. We then conclude with some statistics and real life examples of Diversity, along with management’s role in promoting and enforcing it. We also show some humorous videos, which helps to keep it moving and keep them interested.

By: Judy Buckley

Judy Buckley — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 18:41:09 +0000

Hi, Jay:
We mention loss of consortium in this context: If a person has been sexually harassed at work and is so upset that she(he) doesn’t want to have relations with their spouse, that spouse can sue for “loss of consortium” and that can be a liability to the company. I suppose (hope) that’s really rare, but any lawsuit is one too many. For probably a lot of companies, one big settlement would be devastating. And, for this or any other litigation, even if the company wins, it costs thousands to defend.

By: Jay Allen

Jay Allen — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 15:30:25 +0000

What is the connection of “loss of consortium” damages and workplace harrassment?

By: Judy Buckley

Judy Buckley — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 18:04:52 +0000

We use a combination of slides and DVD’s illustrating various behaviors that would be considered sexual harassment or creating a hostile environment. We do a quiz before and after the presentation. We explain that a person who feels discriminated against will not necesarily use legalistic terms and supervisors must be alert for the meaning behind the words. We stress retaliation is illegal and that people should not hesitate to report an occurrence based on fear of retaliation. We explain the meanings of terms like “constructive knowledge” and “loss of consortium” so supervisors are made aware of the liability attached. We have also asked the management team about whether to do the training in smaller sessions or the full two hours at one time. We do make the training interactive.

By: Kyle Harris

Kyle Harris — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:24:54 +0000

We do bottom to top training using an outside trainer in our new hire workshops. The information that we recieve through her is then used in the annual management training so managers are aware of where potential hotspots are. We also have taken comments that may merit further investigation to ensure that managers or potential situations are remedied right away. This approach has minimized the time necessary to train individuals, keeps the company in compliance and managers informed. We do not use canned videos and do give a test (ungraded at the end) to determine the retention success of our employees as well as to determine if additional training maybe required on an individual basis. We also use these tests to support any potential issues that come up with individuals to remind them of their training/retraining and that the company has zero tolerance. This training is called Professionalism versus Harrassment training and encompasses not only sexual harrassment but also how we act, talk, perceptions we create by our actions and words, dress could create adverse effects for the organization. This approach has been endorsed by our attorney who does the annual management training.