Employer Sexual Harassment Policies & Reporting Protocols

Sexual Harassment Policies: 

In the State of California, employers are required to have a written policy on sexual harassment. Employers are responsible for making sure the language of this policy is easy for all to understand. Employers should also be sure that all employees are familiar with this policy.

Examples of How Employers can be Sure All their Employees are Familiar with the Sexual Harassment Policy:

1. Posting the policy in a location that is easily viewed by all employees such as breakrooms or bulletin boards.
2. Attaching the policy to all HR related emails/announcements.
3. Taking a moment in every company meeting to remind employees of the policy.

Employer’s Obligation to Report: 

If anyone in a supervisory position is made aware of a situation that constitutes sexual harassment, they are required to take action to put a stop to the harassment. They must also take steps to ensure the harassment does not happen again. As previously stated, in the State of California, employers are also required to take steps towards preventing sexual harassment before it occurs.

Retaliation: 

According to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employers are also responsible for preventing any acts of retaliation against employees who report harassment, “regardless of whether such complaint is justifiable.”

Examples of retaliation include:

1. Further harassment (either by the original perpetrator or by a manager/supervisor/employer)
2. Being left out of meetings, events, emails, work activities, etc.
3. Giving the employee poor performance reviews
4. Terminating or demoting the employee
5. Changing his or her job duties or work schedule
6. Transferring the employee to another position or location
7. Reducing his or her salary or benefits
8. Denying the employee a promotion or pay raise

Proving retaliation occurred requires documentation. First the victim needs to report the harassment to their supervisor or HR department depending upon the company’s written harassment policy. Next, if retaliatory action is taken against the victim (by either the original perpetrator or by the company), they should keep records of each action. Victims should also keep records of their work history (old emails, performance reviews, etc.) prior to making their initial harassment complaint. The goal in culminating this documentation is to prove that there is a link between the Harassment complaint and the alleged retaliatory actions.

Limited Confidentiality: 

When an employee files a Sexual Harassment complaint, employers/HR cannot grantee 100% confidentiality to the victim. In order to properly investigate the harassment claims, the employer may need to share the names of both the victim and the alleged perpetrator as well as some (or all) details of the harassment claim. That being said, employers should only share this information with those participating in the investigation. This is to protect both the victim and the alleged perpetrator.

Remedial Steps:

If an employee reports a case of sexual harassment, they can expect employers to respond with the following remedial steps:

1. When filing a complaint, you should feel that you are being heard by Employers/HR Reps. You should be asked to share your entire side of the story. You should also expect to answer any clarifying or follow-up questions pertaining to the alleged harassment.
2. You should expect your employer/HR Rep to take immediate action to address the harassment allegations. Immediate action in this case altering the alleged perpetrator’s work assignments, schedule, or location to reduce chances of the alleged victim being in the vicinity of their alleged perpetrator.
3. The next step you can expect is the launching of an investigation into the alleged sexual harassment. During this investigation, you may be required to provide your employer with any documentation or witnesses (if you have them).