The term harassment covers many areas. Harassment is behavior that is intended to disturb or upset another. Legally, it is when the behavior is disturbing or upsetting.
Workplace harassment should never be tolerated. Be it sexual, racial, or just plain bullying, a hostile work environment is a fire that needs to be put out before it gets out of control.
Aside from making a good job a living hell, it is illegal. Everyone, according to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, has a right to work in a safe place where they are free from persecution of any kind. For those who find that they are in a battle for these rights, resolving problems of this nature can often be handled without much effort.
Confront the Offensive Person
Most often, people who know they are doing the wrong thing, such as making suggestive comments or telling inappropriate jokes, will stop when confronted.
Confrontation can be uncomfortable, but it is nowhere near as uncomfortable as being in a hostile work environment. Furthermore, most people do not want their co-workers to be uncomfortable with them. They would rather be well received.
Confronting a person about a matter that has been found to be offensive, or made someone uncomfortable, is the best first step to solving this problem. Although Human Resource reps are available in most companies, they shouldn't be necessary for simply telling someone to stop behaving in a way that is inappropriate.
HR should, however, be involved if the offending individual continues, or elevates, the hostility or discomfort, despite being asked to stop.
Create a Log of Events
Following the initial step of informing a co-worker that he or she is creating an uncomfortable environment, the date and time should be noted of what had been said or done that led to the confrontation.
Recording details of this sort is only necessary if the behavior continues. Confronting inappropriate behavior more than once may be necessary so as to ensure a co-worker understands that his or her behavior is unwelcome and disruptive.
If it persists, then it is time to inform a supervisor. If a supervisor is informed by a subordinate that there is hostility in the workplace, he must take care of it. If supervisors do not report the matter to HR, then they have broken the law, as they are legally bound to report a case of harassment. They cannot simply "keep it in the office."
At this point, the log should contain instances of inappropriate behavior, instances when the offender(s) was confronted, and instances that a supervisor or HR rep was informed of the situation.
What if the Harasser is the Boss' Boss?
Harassment in the workplace is illegal, and that is all there is to it. The logs created above can become legal evidence for the plaintiff if matters must persist to such extremes.
Working in certain situations, such as a mom and pop business, could prove to have different difficulties than working at a large company with corporate policies in place. The military can prove to have its own challenges as well.
Despite the differences, no one should be made to feel uncomfortable at work due to harassment. It is illegal under federal law. If one works for a company with less than 15 employees, then state laws should be consulted.
Regardless of where one works, or who is committing the offenses, no one is above the law when it comes to harassing others. Workplace harassment is damaging as it threatens the well being of others, creating hostility as they struggle to continue for a means to care for themselves and/or their family.
This article was written with the guidance of Andrew Smith, a Human Resources Generalist in Rochester, NY
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