How To Create A Sexual Harassment Policy

Every organization needs to have a sexual harassment policy no matter how large or small the company is. Unfortunately there are people out there that just cross a line and it ends up putting someone in a bad situation and will require your organization to take some type of disciplinary action or you could end up facing a lawsuit and serious problems. How do you create a sexual harassment policy and what goes into a policy? This article will discuss how to create a strong sexual harassment policy and how you can focus on making sure everyone feels accepted and appreciated in the working environment.

Defining Sexual Harassment
One of the first things you need to do when you are creating a sexual harassment policy is to define what it actually is. There are 2 different kinds of sexual harassment:
1. An employer asking sexual favors from their employee or job applicants.
2. Employers or workers making a hostile working environment where an individual or many individuals are being harassed. The harassment may be deliberate or it could come in the form of suggestive remarks or joke. Acting sexually inappropriate is another type of harassment that falls in this category.

What to put into your policy
When you are sitting down to create a sexual harassment policy you have to consider the guidelines that have been established by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioners Office. There are many different elements that you have to review and understand which ones apply to your company. In the majority of cases you will need to define what sexual harassment is and then clearly explain what type of behavior is acceptable and unacceptable. After you define it you will then need to explain what the reporting procedures are. This helps your employees to know what is required of them when they are reporting an incident. After they report an incident you are required to keep their information protected so they will not be discriminated against and then you will need to start the investigation process.

Using A Sexual Harassment Policy
Once you create it, you need to distribute the policy to your entire staff. They need to be aware of the policy and to understand what is expected from them and what type of behaviors will not be tolerated. If you really want to keep sexual harassment issues under control you need to introduce the policy during a training meeting. This way you can talk to your staff about acceptable behavior instead of just giving them a document and expecting them to read it and actually do something about it.

Training
Managers need to be trained on how to handle sexual harassment. It is vital that you know what to do and how you can speak to your employees and address the behavior quickly. It is never an easy thing to confront someone about their behavior and sexual harassment is one of those behaviors that is very difficult for many people to talk about. The right type of training will help you as you need to maintain your composure and "lay down the law" about sexual harassment.

Protect yourself
There are some people out there that are looking for the easy way to make money. You need to do all that you can in order to keep yourself safe and protected. When speaking with people, always have another person present so you have a witness at all times. Never touch your employees in an inappropriate manner and do not date anyone that works for you. Make sure you speak in a professional way and that you do not use suggestive or crude jokes in the office.