Creating a Respectful Workplace

Harassment & Bullying

Objectives

• Know the laws regarding discrimination and harassment

• Know what to do if you are offended

• Know what to do if you offend someone

Harassment

• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964– Can’t discriminate on the basis of:

Race, Color, Religion, Sex, National Origin and Pregnancy

• Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)– Can’t discriminate against any person 40 years or

older

• Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)– Can’t discriminate on the basis of disability (mental

or physical)

For more information: http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/practices/harassment.cfm

Wisconsin Law Protects Even More:

• Wis. Stats. 111.31—Fair Employment Law…The practice of unfair discrimination in

employment… by reason of their age, race, creed, color, disability, marital status, sex, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, arrest record, conviction record, military service, use or nonuse of lawful products off the employer's premises during nonworking hours, or declining [or participation in] religious matters or political matters…

For more information: https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/111

/II/31

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

• Enforces federal law

• Most employers with 15+ employees are covered by EEOC (20 regarding age discrimination)

• Laws apply to all types of work situations including hiring, firing, promotions, harassment, wages, training and benefits

For more information: http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/index.cfm

State of WisconsinDepartment of Workforce

DevelopmentEqual Rights Division

• State institution to protect workers• Must file a complaint within 300 days

For more information:www.dwd.wisconsin.gov/er

Also…

• Anti-discrimination laws protect people who have complained about harassment from retaliation– Both state and federal laws address this

Harassment

• Can be perpetrated by anyone on company grounds– Not just employees of the organization

• Can be perpetrated by the “silent observer”

Harassment May Include:

Verbal Abuse

Vulgarities

Derogatory LanguageNicknames / Name calling

Offensive cartoonsDEGRADING MATERIALS

Impersonations

Mocking

Offensive jokes

Physical assaults, threats or aggression

Sexual Harassment• Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for

sexual favors, etc.

– Verbal: “Wow, those are nice…!”

– Non-verbal: Giving massage oil for a Secret Santa exchange

– Physcial: Touching; hugging; patting; brushing against

For more information: http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/sexual_harassment.cfm

Sexual Harassment

• A 1x incident could be sufficient for sexual harassment and/or a criminal offense

Is It Sexual Harassment?

• A man uses terms of endearment for a female co-worker such as “pumpkin,” “cutie,” and “beautiful.”– What if a female used these terms toward

another female?

• The employee asks their co-worker to stop saying these things, which they do, but from then on the co-worker ignores important e-mails, fails to give proper communication, and nitpicks the employee’s work.

The Victim

• Can be the target of the harassment

• Can be an “innocent bystander” who is offended by the harassment

• Should object—then the harasser is responsible to stop

The Impact

• Lost productivity– The victim may suffer depression, anxiety,

post traumatic stress– Other employees are uncomfortable and

less productive

• The organization and managers may be liable if they knew about the harassment and didn’t stop it immediately

Your Policy

• Can be found where?

Responsibility of Leadership

• Monitor work environment

• Counsel employees on prohibited behavior

• Stop anything that may be harassment

• Limit work contact between parties involved

• Formally investigate the complaint

Employee Responsibility

• Refrain from participation in, or encouragement of, actions that could be perceived as harassment

• Encourage other employees to report

• Make unwelcome actions known to person involved

Is It Harassment?• A boss is swearing at you and 3 others,

calling you “stupid” and “incompetent”

• At work a co-worker often talks about their sexual endeavors to a group of friends who don’t seem to mind. Another employee overhears and is uncomfortable.

• Your boss has targeted you—she often puts you in impossible situations and when things go wrong blames you. You think she’s threatened by your competence

Harassment is not…

• A one-time incident– It’s a pattern of abusive or degrading conduct

– Often sufficient to interfere with a person’s work

• A “slight annoyance”– “Reasonable person standard” re: a work

environment that’s intimidating, hostile or offensive

– Teasing, comments or incidents that are not serious are not illegal

Harassment Becomes Illegal When…

• It is targeted towards a “protected class” or is sexual in nature AND…

• The conduct is unwelcome AND…– By either participant or bystander

• It creates a work environment that is intimidating, offensive or hostile OR…

• It results in an adverse employment decision – Fired, demoted, etc.

Is It Harassment?

• Your boss is Polish. He thinks “Pollack jokes” are hilarious and tells them all the time.

Is It Harassment?

• You’re newly hired. Your co-workers have been pulling pranks on you. They say you have to “earn the right to work here.”

DWD—Fair Employment Law

• Unfair treatment is not necessarily unlawful.– Unless adverse action is taken because of a

person’s protected class (dwd.wisconsin.gov/er)

• This behavior is BULLYING

Bullying

“Repeated, unreasonable actions directed towards an employee which are intended to intimidate, degrade, humiliate, or undermine; or which

create a risk to the health or safety of the employee(s).”

http://www.workplaceethicsadvice.com

Bullying

• An on-going / repeated pattern of behavior

• Can be peer to peer

• Can be supervisor to subordinate

• Can be a group targeting one person

Bullying Is Not• A one-time incident

• A “tough” or “demanding” boss

• A confrontation or criticism that makes you “feel bad”

– “My boss told me to stop showing up late or I’d be written up—she’s bullying me!”

• Illegal– Unless it involves harassment based on

protected classes

Bullying Examples

Passive Aggression

Excessive Criticism

Excessive Monitoring

Blame without justification

Being Sworn at

Being yelled at

Social isolation / Exclusion

Humiliation

Factors that Increase Bullying• Significant organizational change

• Worker characteristics– Threat to bully: smart, competent, well-

liked– Passive, non-confrontational– New to organization or department

• Poor workplace relationships

• Ineffective work systems– Staff shortages– Role ambiguity– Inadequate communication flow

Bullying Affects People• High stress; PTSD

• Reduced self-esteem

• Psychosomatic complaints – aches, pains and illness

• Phobias

• Sleep disturbance

• Depression

• Family tension and stress

Bullying Affects Organizations

• Staff turnover

• Lost productivity– Work efforts displaced– Low morale

• Poor work performance

• Costs associated with complaints, investigations, and legal action

If You Are Bullied or Harassed

• Recognize it for what it is

• Realize you are not the source of the problem

• Realize that bullying is about control and not about you

It’s Tough To Confront a Bully

• People avoid dealing with them– “It’s just easier that way.”

• But it’s not right!

• Victims have power to stop it– Leaders will investigate per policy– No retaliation laws/policy– Zero tolerance FROM THIS POINT

FORWARD!

Take Action• Say No!

– Be firm, be clear—the behavior is unwelcome.

• Record dates, times, places, comments, actions, & witnesses– Obtain documents and paper trails

• Send a letter to the perpetrator– Include facts/What you would like to happen

• Report the behavior to supervisor/HR

• Expect the perpetrator to deny it

If You’ve Offended Someone• Knock it off!• Pay attention to how you affect

others– Body language– Facial expressions– Comments (even joking comments)

• Accept feedback about your behavior• Apologize• Commit to stopping• Stop

True or False?

• You must tell the perpetrator to stop the unwanted behavior before it can be considered harassment.

• If you think you are being harassed the first thing you should do is call the EEOC.

• If you file a harassment claim and it is unfounded you are still legally protected from retaliation.

True or False?• If you keep your offensive behavior on

the side of bullying (vs. harassment) no adverse action can be taken against you.

• If you think you are being harassed or bullied it is a good idea to objectively document events.

• If you have questions you know where to get them answered.

Is It Illegal?

• You get really upset and call 3 of your employees “incompetent” and “stupid”

• You tell your peer that they look sexy today

• Someone makes a fat joke about a co-worker

A Leader’s Role—What should you do about

bullying?• Have a zero tolerance bullying policy

• Increase employee awareness

• Encourage reporting /open door policies

• Investigate the extent—culture surveys

• Take complaints seriously

• Investigate promptly

• Address bullying behavior IMMEDIATELY

Levels of Intervention• Informal

– “Hey, we don’t talk like that here.”

• Level 1: Awareness Intervention– “I’m concerned about what I’m

hearing.”

• Level 2: Authority Intervention– Written action plan

• Level 3: Disciplinary Intervention– Follow through with consequences

Have You Ever Dealt With A Bully? How Did It Go?

Is It Bullying?

Your employee, Sam, came to you with complaints about another employee, Rose. Sam said that Rose was often

rude, and sometimes criticizing in front of guests. When Rose gets upset at

Sam (and others) she gives the silent treatment. Sam is afraid to confront Rose because of how she anticipates

Rose will react. What do you do?

Is It Bullying?

You decided to mediate a conversation between Sam and Rose. It seemed to

go okay, but a few days later Sam comes back to you and states that Rose is making passive-aggressive statements like, “HELLO Sam, how NICE to see you today!” Sam has overheard Rose talking to others,

saying, “Be careful how you talk to Sam, she might tattle if she takes it

the wrong way.” Now what do you do?

Is It Bullying?

You’ve educated your staff about bullying, and proclaimed an open-door policy. Since then 2 other employees

have come to you about Rose’s behavior. You decide to implement a performance improvement plan. As

you are talking about it with Rose, she exclaims, “This is outrageous! You are

bullying me!” What do you do?

Is It Bullying?

For the most part your staff avoids conflict at all costs—except for Lisa. Lisa is an “in your face” kind of person. She directs other people’s behavior in a no-nonsense way, and she never accepts

excuses. She is a great worker, and does excellent customer service, but other associates have complained that they feel “bossed around” by her. What do

you do?

What Will You Commit To Today?