June 2016
Thirty years after sexual harassment was recognized as a
form of illegal sex discrimination in Meritor
Savings Bank v. Vinson, workplace harassment remains a persistent problem:
in fiscal year 2015, approximately one-third of charges of discrimination filed
with the EEOC included an allegation of harassment, and likely most instances
of harassment are not reported, either internally or to a government
agency. To address this issue, the EEOC
released a report on harassment in the workplace, stating the business case for
preventing and stopping harassment—including legal costs; employee morale,
health, and productivity; turnover; and reputational harm—and provides some
recommendations for doing so.
The report addressed a number of issues relating to
harassment prevention and correction, including trainings, policies, leadership
and accountability. It is important to
both clearly define prohibited behavior, and create an environment in which
employees feel comfortable coming forward to report any harassment before it
gets to the point where legal action may be taken. According to the report, harassment trainings
that focus too much on avoiding legal liability have not been effective in
preventing and stopping harassment, but suggested new and different approaches
to training, such as bystander intervention and general respect and civility trainings,
which may prove more successful. Of
course, any training should take into account the specific workforce and workplace,
as what may be effective for one employer, may not be for another.
The report goes on to identify environmental risk factors
that may lead to harassment. Of course, every
workplace will have at least some of these characteristics, but if a company
has several, it might want to focus on minimizing the risk that these
situations can create. The identified
risk factors include:
·
Homogenous workforces;
·
Workplaces where some workers do not conform to
workplace norms;
·
Cultural and language differences in the
workplace;
·
Coarsened social discourse outside the
workplace;
·
Workforces with many young workers;
·
Workplaces with “high value” employees;
·
Workplaces with significant power disparities;
·
Workplaces that rely on customer service or
client satisfaction;
·
Workplaces where work is monotonous or consists
of low-intensity tasks;
·
Isolated workplaces;
·
Workplace cultures that tolerate or encourage
alcohol consumption; and
·
Decentralized workplaces.
For assistance in preventing and stopping workplace
harassment, including reviewing policies and procedures, conducting trainings,
or minimizing risk factors, contact James B. Sherman at jasherman@wesselssherman.com or by phone at 952-746-1700.
