It’s not ‘Office Bants’ it is Harassment
Workplace harassment is distressing that affects not only the wellbeing of employees but also the overall culture of your organisation. As business owners and / or business leaders, it is your responsibility to create a safe, respectful environment where employees feel empowered to perform their role without fear of harassment.
Harassment in the workplace can take many forms. Under the Equality Act 2010, it is defined as unwanted behaviour or conduct related to a protected characteristic (such as race, gender, sexual orientation) that violates someone’s dignity or creates a hostile or intimidating environment. It could be verbal, non-verbal, physical, psychological, online and can include bullying, offensive jokes, inappropriate comments or unwelcome behaviour. It’s not ‘Bants’ it’s offensive and needs to stop.
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) is due to commence on October 26th and places a statutory duty on the employer to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. If the employers fail in their duty the Equality and Human Rights Commission can take steps and a tribunal can order a compensation uplift of up to 25% on the claim award. More guidance can be found here: www.legislation.gov.uk
How to Avoid Workplace harassment:
Promote a Respectful Culture: Foster a working environment where everyone feels safe, respected and valued
Training and awareness: At the very basic level, employees should understand what constitutes harassment and the consequences. If you can, provide regular training on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
Clear policies: Have a policy that defines unacceptable behaviours that sets out how to report it and it outlines disciplinary actions.
Encourage open communication: Make sure employees feel comfortable discussing concerns without fear of retaliation.
Monitor workplace behaviours: Managers should be trained to spot signs of harassment and act promptly to address inappropriate behaviour
What to do if harassment is reported:
Act promptly: Employers must take every complaint seriously and investigate it promptly – in our experience, this is often delayed which causes more problems further down the line.
Confidentiality: Investigations should be confidential to protect both the person reporting the harassment and the accused. Whenever we have helped clients in these cases, we constantly reiterate ‘only those that need to know should know’
Impartial investigation: Whether you handle the investigation internally or bring in external help, ensure the investigation is neutral. Quite often, our clients ask us to independently investigate – we don’t know the people involved so it takes the emotion out and prevents things from getting messy, and it also ensures our clients are handling the complaint in the correct way.
Gather all the evidence: This includes witness statements, emails, messages and other documentation
Timescales: Investigate and resolve the case in a timely manner. We appreciate these cases take time and our experience has taught us the key part is to keep the person who raised the complaint informed of your progress.
Appropriate Disciplinary Action: If harassment is confirmed, take action against the perpetrator swiftly. This could range from mediation to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment if necessary. It’s crucial that the action taken is proportional to the severity of the harassment. More often than not, managers don’t like to discipline ‘the offender’ as they want their team to have harmonious working relationships. If you don’t nip this in the bud, they may well repeat offend but more importantly what message is that sending to the rest of your team?
Follow up: Monitor the situation after the investigation to ensure the harassment has stopped and the workplace remains respectful. We continually coach line managers to be proactive rather than bury their heads in the sand as this has proven to reduce conflict, ensuring happier teams and better productivity.
Ensure the wellbeing of the victim is prioritised: Offer support through counselling if needed or using your companies Employee Assisted Programme (EAP) if you provide one. Most importantly, check in on them yourself - it costs you nothing to ask them how they are and listening to how they respond.
Managing workplace harassment is a delicate but necessary aspect of HR. Always remember that failure to address harassment can lead to employment tribunals, legal consequences and reputational damage, not to mention the impact it has on your employees. We have supported many managers through this process to ensure the company remains legally compliant and held countless workshops to raise confidence in managers to have those difficult conversations – this upskills your managers and empowers them to do the right thing!
Can we help you?
If you’re a business owner, MD or HR professional looking for an affordable HR partner you can trust, why not talk to us?Please contact us – we’d love to hear from you enquiries@p2hr.co.uk