Sexual harassment incidents may cause a lot of legal and financial problems to an organization. It affects the harassed party as well as the environment where it takes place. Sexual harassment can ruin the victim’s peace of mind. It can have terrific affect on the victim’s emotions and performance. Therefore, an employer should understand its bad effects and try to reach out to the effected employee in order to boost the process of recovery.
You, as a manger, can easily identify if an employee is being harassed. For example, sexual harassment can affect the performance of the employee in the short term. In addition, if no steps are taken to fix the problem, the employee’s performance may deteriorate to a very low level. The victim may miss work over and over again and avoid situations in which the harassment can take place. Moreover, the employee will lose interest in the work due to extreme stress and worries. These are some of the more common signs that can help you figure out if an employee is being sexually harassed.
An employee may also suffer from this sort of stress even after they had made a sexual harassment claim. The victim may be afraid of working with the person who is trying to harass them. This fair may penetrate the thoughts and behavior of the victim. In order to stop the things from getting worse, you should separate both the harasser and the victim right away. They should not be allowed to work in the same place. Apart from this, you might warn the perpetrator about the legal actions and consequences if the matter is taken to the court of law. You should explain the retaliation policy of the company to both the parties.
The bulk of people express strong opinions when it comes to sexual harassment. Due to sexual harassment, the victim may have to bear the loss of relationship with their colleagues. If the situation gets worse, the workplace can be divided into two groups. One group will support the victim, while the other will support the harasser. As a result, the manager will find it difficult to manage their work responsibility. Therefore, such a situation should be address right away; otherwise, the management will be responsible if the productivity the workplace suffers.
The sexual harassment can change the dynamics of a workplace for the individual who is being harassed. It will not only affect the victim but also the co-workers and the environment. As a manager, if you have come across such a situation, you should take steps right away in order to minimize the effects of sexual harassment. There are more than one way to control sexual harassment in an organization. However, the most effective way is to train the employees from the start and let them know that there is no tolerance for sexual harassment. In other words, you need to take preventive measures so that no employee could harass someone sexually in a workplace. Despite the preventive measures, if it does take place, you should take strict and sensible actions against the harasser.