Sexual harassment is a type of discrimination and can take many different forms. It violates your civil rights and can damage your emotional, mental, and physical well-being.
Unfortunately, sexual harassment is not uncommon in American workplaces. According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), they received 27,291 charges for this problem between the financial year 2018 and 2021.
The best way to prevent sexual harassment from occurring in your workplace is through proper training training. This article will explain some of the basics of sexual harassment training, its implementation, and its benefits and challenges.
Understanding Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment can be any form of sexual advancement, physical or verbal. It can occur between any two people (including same-sex) who are not married to each other. It typically involves a situation where at least one person feels uncomfortable because of this behavior.
Sexual harassment can take many forms, including:
- Physical contact, such as patting or touching the body in ways that make someone uncomfortable; and
- Verbal comments about an individual’s body, appearance, or clothes that are offensive or suggestive. This may include telling jokes based on gender stereotypes. It also includes asking questions about their private lives, such as “How often do you have sex?”
Legal Obligations and Consequences
Sexual harassment is a form of discrimination and can be illegal. It’s important to know what sexual harassment is, who’s responsible for preventing it, and what the consequences are if you don’t.
Many events in history show how sexual harassment can have legal consequences. In a recent spate of events, the Federal regulators fined ex-CEO of McDonald’s Stephen Easterbrook $400,000 for charges related to a sex scandal.
It is also mandatory in several places to ensure training employees to prevent any sexual harassment events. For instance, Californian law mandates sexual harassment training.
According to Emtrain, any employer with five or more employees should provide at least one hour of training. Similarly, people in managerial positions require two hours of training. The website also states that newly hired or recently promoted managers should get this training within six days.
Not abiding by such laws can also have legal consequences. Hence, it is best to train your employees, as it has multiple benefits.
The Role of Sexual Harassment Training
Sexual harassment training is a critical component of an effective anti-harassment policy. To ensure your employees are protected from sexual harassment, providing them with the right tools and information is essential. This includes comprehensive training and explicit policies on addressing and reporting such issues.
All employees should receive this training, from those who work in the mailroom to executives in upper management. Sexual harassment training should be repeated annually. This allows employees to refresh their knowledge of what constitutes sexual harassment and how to handle such incidents. This is especially true if changes have been made within an organization since last year’s session.
In that case, you might also want to include new policies or procedures during this period. This can also benefit your company by keeping it clear of legal consequences. In 2021, 17 of the 50 states had a mandate asking employers to provide their employees with sexual harassment training.
Taking the same example as above, sexual harassment training in California is mandatory by law. In fact, California, along with Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Maine, and Delaware, has a mandate for this in both public and private sectors. Hence, giving sexual harassment training is crucial if you don’t want legal consequences.
Benefits of Sexual Harassment Training
By providing sexual harassment training, you can help to increase employee awareness of the issue and reduce the likelihood of harassment. Additionally, this training will improve your employees’ understanding of the problem and its impact on their workplace culture.
For example, if employees know it is unacceptable in your organization, they are less likely to engage in such conduct themselves. They may also be better equipped to recognize when someone else has been subjected to sexual misconduct by another employee.
This increased awareness can help prevent further instances because it gives everyone more information about how best to handle such situations. It empowers individuals to act appropriately and create a more respectful and safe environment.
Best Practices for Implementing Sexual Harassment Training
There are a variety of best practices for implementing sexual harassment training. Here are some suggestions:
- Use a variety of media to present information. For example, you might use videos, posters, and handouts that explain how sexual harassment can be prevented in the workplace; and
- Engage learners using a variety of methods. For example, you could have participants complete online quizzes or fill out worksheets with questions about the topic. You could also hold group discussions where people share their experiences with sexual harassment in their workplaces. This helps them learn from one another’s experiences as well as yours.
Finally, your training program must allow time for feedback so that all participants feel heard throughout this process. Doing so will help ensure they retain what they learned later on down the road when they need it most.
- You must also teach the five core measures that have proven effective in reducing sexual harassment. These core measures are:
- Engaged leadership;
- Accountability;
- Comprehensive harassment policies;
- Accessible complaint process; and
- Regular interaction and training.
Overcoming Challenges
Sexual harassment is a severe problem. It can cause stress, anxiety, and depression for those who experience it. Sexual harassment training helps to prevent these adverse effects by teaching employees about the laws against sexual harassment. It also instructs them on responding when they witness or experience it.
It’s important to note that many challenges are associated with providing sexual harassment training, including obtaining buy-in from upper management. Additionally, ensuring employees complete the course once offered can be another significant hurdle. However, there are steps you can take to overcome these challenges and ensure that your organization provides effective training programs:
- Identify a small group of employees to serve as trainers;
- Have the trainers develop training materials that are easy to understand and relevant to your organization’s specific needs; and
- Ensure all employees complete sexual harassment training within 30 days of being hired.
Conclusion
Sexual harassment is a serious issue that affects people of all ages, races, and genders. It can lead to depression and even suicide in victims, so you must do everything possible to stop it from happening.
Sexual harassment training effectively prevents this horrible crime from occurring in your workplace or school. It teaches people what sexual harassment looks like and how to stop it from happening again.
HR Future Staff Writer
