Companies must pay great attention to establishing a safe environment. Regardless of gender, ethnicity and religion, every employee should have the right to refuse to be treated improperly.
My corporation provides a good course to teach employees what is harassment, how to avoid being a harasser, and why it’s so important to us.
Here it’s the tips of preventing unwanted conduct based on a protected characteristic such as gender or race which violates a person’s dignity.
Treat all colleagues with dignity and respect.
Everyone has a right to a working environment where they feel free to be themselves without feeling uncomfortable, awkward or upset, or pressured into doing things they don’t want to. Make sure that none of your behavior could be hurtful to your colleagues. Unwelcome confuct is the basis of workplace harassment.
Teasing that may be offensive is never acceptable.
A person who consents to certain conduct doesn’t necessarily welcome it. Even when others around you engage in potentially offensive teasing or banter, that doesn’t mean it’s okay to do it.
Never make a joke that could be considered derogatory or offensive about any protected characteristic. Be sensitive to this kind of behavior, and if it relates to sex, age, race, or any other protected characteristic, or appears to make someone uncomfortable, stop immediately.
Don’t make assumptions.
Just because someone doesn’t openly object to particular behavior doesn’t mean they are comfortable with it. People may even feel pressured to join in with banter or joking behavior while secretly feeling uncomfortable.
Consider what’s appropriate to the working relationship. Teasing, flirting, joking, or similar conduct may seem innocent, but sometimes it’s not perceived that way by others. Comments you would make to friends aren’t necessarily appropriate to a working relationship.
Always keep in mind that justbecause someone is silent in or even participates in the face of potentially offensive conduct, it doesn’t mean that the conduct is welcome.
Harassment can be an abuse of power.
A person consents to certain conduct doesn’t mean the conduct is welcome. For example, if an employee consents to having sex with a supervisor out of fear of being fired, the relationship would most likely be viewed as unwelcome.
Work decisions such as promotions, demotions, pay, or the assignment of work, should never be affected by a protected characteristic.
In particular, if an employee feels in any way pressured to engage in sexual conduct or submit to sexual banter in order to protect their job, this is very likely to be unlawful sexual harassment.
However, harassment doesn’t depend on the jobs of the people involved. In some cases, nonsupervisory employees can be found to have harassed supervisors or managers.
Speak out and support your colleagues.
If you witness harassment, don’t keep quiet. By speaking out, you help yourself, your colleagues, and create a better working environment for everyone.
Speak to the person whose conduct is inappropriate and ask them to stop. If it doesn’t stop the behavior, report the conduct to your manager, Human Resources department or Legal department.
