Preventing and correcting workplace harassment: Guidelines for employers

J. Bret Becton, J. Bruce Gilstrap and Maurice Forsyth

Business Horizons, 2017, vol. 60, issue 1, 101-111

Abstract: In recent years, the number of harassment claims filed with the EEOC has declined overall, but this fact masks a frightening reality: though claims involving some types of harassment have declined, claims for other types of harassment—especially nontraditional forms of harassment—have actually increased. Therefore it remains necessary for employers to maintain a current anti-harassment program, which should consist of the following elements: (1) a clear anti-harassment policy; (2) an explicit statement of prohibited behaviors that can be considered harassment; (3) a complaint procedure that encourages employees to come forward with harassment complaints; (4) protections for complainants and witnesses against retaliation; (5) an investigative strategy that protects privacy interests of both the alleged victim and the accused offender and ensures confidentiality to the extent possible; (6) periodic management training and employee awareness programs that continue to communicate the organization's position on this issue; and (7) measures and processes to ensure prompt corrective action to stop ongoing harassment, and appropriate remedial and disciplinary actions for offenders. In this article, we provide best practice recommendations concerning each of these elements.

Keywords: Workplace harassment; Harassment policy; Anti-harassment training; EEOC compliance; HR best practice; Job discrimination (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:bushor:v:60:y:2017:i:1:p:101-111

DOI: 10.1016/j.bushor.2016.09.005

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