Ending Workplace Sexual Harassment
The first time I ever experienced sexual harassment in the workplace was at the age of 15. I worked in a family-owned pizza shop at the time, and it was the boss’s brother/manager that I had an encounter with. However, this was something that continuously happened to me and many other girls over the years, but the owner never took this issue seriously. The owner was like many other bosses, completely unfazed by this issue, I wasn’t though. There is a growing issue of sexual harassment in the workplace and it needs to come to an end.
Sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual advance that creates a hostile environment and/or interferes with a person’s ability to work, learn, or participate in a program or activity. This can take many forms through verbal, physical, or electronically.
Sexual harassment in the workplace is not something that is new to many people. While this is something that can be experienced by both males and females, women are far more likely to experience sexual harassment in the workplace in comparison to men. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center "Thirty eight percent of all women and fourteen percent of men have reported experiencing sexual harassment at work." This is just the number of those that have reported, imagine how many haven’t. This is an ever-growing issue and yet many don’t see it that way. Even with the growing number of people experiencing this issue, companies still refuse to implement policies to prevent it.
Imagine this, Amy's coworker Craig decides to comment about Amy's looks in a sexual way. He decides to talk about how sexy she looks in a low-cut top and would love to see her without it. Now, if you're Amy in this situation you probably want to crawl in a hole and die, whereas Craig may find this funny. However, it's not funny, this creates a highly uncomfortable situation for Amy and it's even worse if she feels that the company will not protect her if she were to report Craig.
There is only one way to put an end to sexual harassment in the workplace; employers need to stop ignoring it and recognize that it is a moral crisis. In order to do this, they need to start enforcing zero-tolerance policies, have mandatory training, and create a space that is respectful and safe for all.
One way to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace is by providing mandatory training that promotes a safe and healthy work environment. In providing mandatory training, it recognizes the potential problem from the very beginning. Through the use of this training, it creates a better work culture for all of those involved. These trainings go hand in hand with the zero tolerance policies because they go through the ground rules for what is considered sexual harassment, how to prevent it, and how to report it.
Some may say that sexual harassment training may cause more harm than good because it causes men to be more likely to blame the victims. This is due to the dynamic of men fearing false allegations and women being scared to not be believed. Men are more likely to become defensive if they feel that they are being targeted during these presentations. However, in order to fix this the presentations have to be done in a different manner than what most are doing now. One of the most promising alternatives to traditional sexual harassment training is the bystander intervention training. This is a type of training in which everyone is considered to be an ally of one another automatically instead of pitting them against each other. With this type of training comes “If you see something, say or do something.” This has shown to be far more promising than your average sexual harassment training and is considered the best alternative.
Zero-tolerance policies are policies that call for action, sometimes termination, in the case of a verified sexual harassment report. However, termination is not always the only option for an instance of sexual harassment there are other corrective options. These policies do not automatically call for the termination of the offender but instead ensure a thorough investigation of the allegation. The goal of a zero-tolerance policy is to promote a safe work environment for all employees.
Creating a respectful and safe work environment is another way to combat workplace sexual harassment because if employees respect each other, then the likelihood of workplace sexual harassment lowers. Sexual harassment can create a hostile work environment, impact morale, and employee motivation. It is something that can have detrimental effects on the work environment. This could cause things such as high turnover rates which could impact the company as a whole. Therefore, through creating a safe and respectful work environment, employees are able to feel comfortable in the workplace which in turn lets them feel as though they are able to work freely with no worries.
In conclusion, sexual harassment in the workplace is something that is a large issue and moral crisis, it makes the work environment hostile and causes companies to have high turnover rates. In order to create a safe and respectful work environment management can implement both zero-tolerance policies and sexual harassment training which would allow for everyone to feel secure at work. This in return would make everyone comfortable and feel far more motivated to both come to work and get their work done. Companies need to start strictly enforcing and adhering to these policies in order for their employees to feel welcomed in their work environment.
No comments:
Post a Comment