Tag Archives: ethics

17 Tips for Anti-Harassment Training

I am pleased to share my latest SHRM post reflecting on the EEOC’s report regarding harassment in the workplace.

The recent release of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) report on sexual harassment shouldn’t be cause for a collective yawn. Rather, the report contains the seeds for great ideas to fight harassment of all stripes, including that based on race, gender, national origin and religion.

EEOC Chair Jenny Yang first announced the creation of a Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace early last year, and her message then was simple: We have made a lot of progress, but the problem persists.

Fast-forward to June, which was the 30th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s recognition that sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. After more than a year of study, including numerous public hearings, EEOC commissioners Chai Feldblum and Victoria Lipnic issued their report.

One key aspect of the study is the importance of training supervisors and management. Let’s focus on the following 17 tips for upgrading your training that are based not only on specific recommendations from EEOC commissioners but also on my own advice. (Note: While I served on the task force, I speak for neither the EEOC nor the task force.)

1. Ensure that the training is interactive and facilitated by a qualified trainer. If your employees are passive participants, the training will not achieve its full potential. Ideally, the training should be live. If that is not feasible for cost reasons or because employees are geographically dispersed, you can consider an online alternative, but it should have an interactive component.

2. Confirm that support comes from the highest levels.Without the endorsement of senior leaders, the training likely will be seen as a mere “check-the-box” exercise. Executives should attend the event and ideally provide opening or closing comments. Leaders must make it clear that everyone will be held accountable for complying with the requirements covered in the training.

3. Clarify that the training should be taken seriously. The purpose of this exercise is not simply to sensitize supervisors; it is to help them keep their jobs. Make it clear that the employer, like the courts, holds supervisors to a higher standard than other employees.

4. Emphasize the business risks of engaging in or tolerating harassing behaviors. Such risks include lost productivity, lower employee retention and the employer’s tarnished reputation. Simply put, harassment is bad for business.

5. Provide specific examples of unacceptable behaviors as opposed to making general statements. Examples must be customized so that they resonate in your workplace. Canned training is a waste of everyone’s time.

6. Focus on risk factors that increase the likelihood that harassment will be tolerated. These include a homogenous workforce and workers who are dependent on customers’ tips and may be afraid to speak up. Supervisor training must focus on how these risk factors may increase the potential for harassment so that managers can address problems before they occur.

7. Emphasize what is unacceptable vs. what is illegal.Employers don’t want to suggest that behavior is unlawful when it might not be. For example, in most cases, one comment is not actionable. You also don’t want to imply that unacceptable behavior is OK simply because it is not significant or pervasive enough to violate the law.

8. Describe both severe and subtle examples of harassment. If employers don’t include the less obvious examples, supervisors may define harassing behavior too narrowly. On the other hand, if blatant behaviors are excluded, managers may fail to address what they cannot imagine anyone doing even when it does indeed take place.

9. Address unlawful harassment in all its forms.Harassment can be based on a person’s race, ethnicity or religion. And don’t forget that gender-based harassment, even if it is not sexual in nature, is also against the law.

10. Provide supervisors with guidance on how to respond in the moment. If supervisors aren’t taught what to say from the very moment an employee reports harassment to them, they may say something unwise such as, “That doesn’t sound like Mark.” Make it simple: Supervisors should say, “Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention. We take them very seriously.”

11. Emphasize that supervisors cannot promise absolute confidentiality. Managers should report all complaints to HR as a matter of course. However, if they aren’t informed of this step in advance, and they agree to an employee’s request to keep a complaint confidential, then they cannot tell anyone, despite the legal and business risks that go with having notice and doing nothing.

12. Train supervisors to respond proactively to unacceptable conduct. Managers who see, hear or otherwise become aware of harassing behavior should follow up, even in the absence of a complaint. To be silent is to condone. This is why the EEOC recommends that so-called bystander training be incorporated into supervisory education efforts. This type of training is based on the premise that witnesses or others who become aware of harassing behavior (bystanders) play a key role in stamping out harassment.

13. Emphasize nonretaliation. Fear of retaliation is the primary reason employees do not raise concerns when they should. Employers must define retaliation as broadly as the law in terms of who is protected (not just complainants) and what is prohibited (not just discipline and discharge). Examples of other prohibited retaliatory actions include changing the amount of work given to employees, shifting the nature of assigned tasks and excluding workers from key meetings. Emphasize that retaliation of any kind against a person who reports or witnesses harassment will be met with immediate and proportionate corrective action.

14. Provide civility training. Even though rude or uncivil behavior is not unlawful unless it relates to a protected group, incivility is the gateway to harassing behavior. Therefore, the EEOC recommends that employers conduct civility training. True, civility training can create problems with the National Labor Relations Board. But for supervisors who are not covered under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), such training can be infused not only into anti-harassment training but also performance management training without risk of violating the NLRA, if structured properly.

15. Use humor carefully. Appropriate humor can sometimes ease tension so that participants are more open to the training, but it is very important not to minimize the seriousness of the issue. In my experience, humor is best used to poke fun at those who defend inappropriate behavior: “He really thought that if he called her at home off the clock to share his lustful feelings for her, it was not harassment. Perhaps he should be fired for both harassment and stupidity.”

16. Evaluate and re-evaluate. Elicit specific feedback about what resonated with employees and what they want to know more about. Discuss which behaviors do not qualify as harassment, such as a nondiscriminatory but tough management style.

17. Convey that the solution is not to avoid those who are different from us. Trying to avoid harassment claims by avoiding certain groups of employees altogether may constitute unlawful discrimination. Provide specific examples on how supervisors can engage in mentoring and promote social inclusion within a diverse workforce.

Mad Men: Where Are Our Friends One Year Later?

I am pleased to share my latest SHRM blog post regarding what “Mad Men” can teach us about life and career: http://blog.shrm.org/blog/a-year-later-what-can-mad-men-teach-us-about-life-and-career

With all of the focus on the new overtime rules, a major event could be forgotten. One year ago last night we said good bye to Mad Men. For some, it was just a television show. Allow them their blissful naivety. A lot has happened to our friends in the last year with career and life lessons for all of us. So let’s leave the real world for just a moment:

Joan. Because Joan would not sleep with a knuckle dragger named Ferg, Joan was forced out of McCann Erickson. That was far from the first time she was sexually harassed. Joan had enough of the boys’ clubs of the corporate world. So she started her own business. I am delighted to report that Joan made 17% more over the last year than she ever made at McCann Erickson or Sterling Cooper. That gender pay gap? No issue when you are your own boss. Bravo Joan!

Roger. Although a lothario, Roger was loved by most of us. I think of Roger when I think of someone I like but “should not” or don’t like someone I “should.” Unfortunately, senior executives have begun to ask Roger in various ways whether he has given thought to when he will retire. Under the law, employees generally cannot be forced to retire. So picking up on the not so subtle hints, Roger called Joan, who had threatened to contact the EEOC when she was forced out of McCann Erickson. The predator is now prey but has taken control by making clear to the powers that be that he does not want to hear about age again, only about his performance. And, it remains stellar. On a personal note, Roger married Marie Calvet, the mother of Don’s ex-wife, Megan Draper, He is very happy with Marie—spending long holidays in Paris.

Pete. For so many years, it was hard to find anything nice to say about Pete. He was, after all, the character we loved to hate but not quite all the way. I confess that I feared his jaw dropping job in Wichita, Kansas City with a private jet to boot would bring out the worst of him. In reality, he initially struggled at his new job. So, he sought out a coach and listened to the advice he received. He has become more humble as hard as that may be to believe. And, now more of a team player, too, he is getting more support from his co-workers. And, part of success is people wanting you to be successful. Pete is on right track, back in the groove. On the personal side, Pete and Trudy are genuinely happy. Sometimes reconciliations work.

Betty. As we all knew was inevitable, we lost Berdie (Don’s term of endearment for Betty). Thankfully, she did not suffer too much. It happened too quickly for too much pain. But before she died, she and Don spent a weekend together (concluding one of Don’s 3 calls from the final episode). Betty’s death caused Don to think more about his own mortality and what he wanted to achieve and who he wanted to be. Back to my pal Don shortly.

Peggy. Let’s return to the Boys’ Club at McCann Erickson. It would be next to impossible for any woman to survive, let alone thrive. But thriving is what Peggy is doing. In her own voice, she has succeeded beyond expectations. She did not ask for a seat at the table; she took it. She is now a full-fledged copywriter with a waiting list of clients. She started a mentoring program for girls in junior high school. One of her mentees is a young girl named Sheryl Sandberg. As is often the case, the mentee teaches the mentor. Whenever Peggy is told that she is bossy, she hears Sheryl’s words and responds that she is simply leading. I am also delighted to report that Peggy and Stan got married. On a personal note, it was an honor to dance with the bride at the wedding.

Don. And, that leaves us with my friend Don. The last season was beyond painful as we watched Don’s life fall apart. Many of us wondered whether he would survive—we feared the opening of the show was a metaphor for his ending. Instead, he found himself at an Ashram in California where he thought of the genius marketing campaign for Coke and then returned to McCann Erickson to implement it. But his drinking continued unabated. Eventually, he hit bottom and went into treatment. At times, we all need help. No stigma. Get the help you need. I am pleased to report that Don has not had a drink for 7 months, one day at a time. No longer an active alcoholic, Don has focused on repairing his personal life. He and Megan had a short reconciliation but Megan is now on prime time so the bi-costal relationship ended. More importantly, the mad man is now a good man. Don is a good dad without a role model for the parenting skills he now employs.

Conclusion: Okay, I am a sucker for happy endings. So, I wanted to see all the seeds of professional and personal happiness planted by Matt Weiner in the last episode grow to their full potential. Yes, the Mad Men world is singing in perfect harmony, except for the tragic death of Betty. But, after watching the last season 3 times (to which I will admit), Matt left me no room to save her, as much as I tried. And, if nothing else, as you can plainly see, I am a realist, says the mad man who remains mad about the mad men and women of Mad Men.

Neither this blog nor SHRM, Duane Morris or Jonathan A Segal is affiliated, sponsored, endorsed, licensed or in any way associated with AMC. AMC neither endorses nor approves of the content of this piece of fiction or the services provided by SHRM, Duane Morris or Jonathan A Segal.