Hollywood has been center stage for the wrong reasons lately. As the number of celebrities in Hollywood grows for both being exposed for sexual misconduct and for taking the steps to report on being subjected to sexual harassment, the impact to the world has been dramatic. We have seen “Me Too” posts beyond imagination on social media identifying that more than 2/3 of women have felt they have been harassed at some point in their life. With celebrities with the likes and following of Ophra taking a strong and influential stance on the issue it is creating a storm poised to wreak havoc (which may well be deserved) on number of sexual harassment complaints and law suits. This tsunami being created with the increased visibility into the acceptability of being able to stand up for yourself and hold the person responsible for the misconduct accountable leaves us all feeling at risk in HR. The resulting ramifications for organizations must not be under played.
Organizations have started to create more stringent policies around acceptable behaviour and have been forced to severe relationships some very high powered and productive individuals. Businesses are still accountable for having a safe environment free of sexual harassment for all employees and failure to do so can and will result in more than dismissals. In a recent article in USA Today they indicate lawsuits as high as $95,000,000.
Don’t be at risk, create and deploy your policies and train all your staff. You can turn this into a positive for your organization by showing that you are vested in providing a safe and harassment free environment for all your workers. Promote your organizations intolerance for inappropriate behavior!
Contact us to learn about access to our free sexual harassment training or for help in writing and communicating your Corporate Policies. Click here for more info.
