Excerpted from an SHRM Blog by Kelly Marinelli
In the midst of all of the justifiable community outrage, and big policy discussions around gender, diversity, culture and the role of HR in combatting sexual harassment in organizations, there is a multitude of voices straining to be heard. They come from business leaders, asking what it is their organizations can do today to begin to solve this problem and to keep it at bay. Some are even asking-could this be happening in our organization without us being aware of it.
What can HR professionals do to address this problem?
1. If your leaders have not yet approached HR for solutions, share information with your organization’s executive leadership on the potential negative impact of failing to address sexual harassment risk, and how HR can help.
2. Ensure that your organization’s culture is supportive of respect, dignity, transparency and trust. Work with your leadership to reinforce awareness of and professional activity consistent with these agreed-upon, shared cultural norms and values.
3. Review your current training on sexual harassment and harassment in general, and the organization’s strategy for delivering this training.
a. Is the training up to date?
b. Does the training contain the right information and activities to make it engaging and effective?
c. Is training delivered to every employee, including executive leadership, or are some team members exempted?
d. Is training and communication around harassment prevention championed by leadership, or is it seen as a waste of time or a legal requirement alone?
You can read the full post here.