Ensuring that your workplace is harassment-free has the potential to benefit employees, teams and business effectiveness by:

-              Improving workplace morale, employee commitment and
             trust.    

-             Minimising financial and legal risks and costs incurred when
            responding to/dealing with a complaint.

-             Avoiding potential damage to the organisation’s image as a
            result of any negative media coverage.

• How you could analyse your workplace to identify any sex-based harassment issues for women.

• Suggested actions you could take to address the sex-based harassment issues for women that you have identified.

• The relationship between sex-based harassment and issues of workplace culture and organisation.

• Revisit your workforce profile to find where your female employees are.

• Consult with your employees.

• Examine your current policies and practices that aim to promote a harassment-free workplace.

• Undertake a specific harassment, discrimination and bullying survey or set of focus groups to identify if there are any specific ‘hot spots’ within your organisation.

• Review your policies and procedures and any grievances history to see if you have had any complaints relating to sex-based harassment.

Do you have a formal sex-based harassment policy?  If yes, have you considered also supplementing it with a broader anti-harassment policy?

Do you have a formal complaints/grievance mechanism?

Do you have trained Contact Officers in all locations?  Do you have trained grievance or investigation officers?

Would your policy and complaints procedures withstand the rigour of a review by an independent third party?

Are there guarantees relating to privacy and confidentiality?

How well are complaints managed? How do you know (eg. is feedback sought over whether the dispute resolution process has been fair and effective)?

Do you have an EAP with trained counsellors capable of dealing with sex-based harassment and other similar issues?

Do you include sex-based harassment training (including outlining your policies and procedures) in induction training and provide regular refresher training for all staff and managers?

Are casual staff and volunteers trained in policies and procedures as well as permanent staff?

Do you monitor the incidence of harassment and/or bullying in your workplace? 

Are you confident that no sex-based harassment is taking place in your organisation? What evidence do you have to support this?

Do you have mechanisms in place that allow you to monitor whether complaints of harassment or bullying are being raised informally, without breaching confidentiality (eg. a women’s network, informal meetings with managers, harassment contact officers, Employee Assistance Program)?

Is information on sex-based harassment and bullying freely available, accessible and known to all staff?

Do you know who is raising the issues? Women? Men? Part-timers? Pregnant women? Women of a different cultural or linguistic background? Mature workers? Young women?

Are managers and staff trained regularly on issues of sex-based harassment and bullying?

Can you identify what the precise nature of each issue is (eg. sexual harassment, bullying based on sex or gender, or pregnancy discrimination)?

Have staff views on whether sex-based harassment is an issue been sought? If so, when was the last time such views were sought?

Have you surveyed employees to see whether they feel free to raise issues without fear of victimisation or reprisal?

Do you have any ways, other than through formal complaints, of telling whether there are any issues in your workplace? Eg. staff surveys, exit interview, morale indexes, informal feedback mechanisms or independent audits?

Does your exit interview aim to identify whether people are leaving because of harassment or bullying issues?

What are the mechanisms telling you? Are some women more vulnerable than others to harassment, such women without English fluency or older women?

• Not all of these actions may be relevant to your organisation. You will need to decide whether you choose to do all, some, or none of the suggested actions and whether you wish to tailor suggested actions to suit the needs of your workplace.

•  If your workplace analysis demonstrates your organisation has no issues for women in this employment matter, you would not need to take any actions.

• Ensure that your organisation abides by lawful workplace practices (HREOC website).

• Ensure that the CEO and senior management endorse your organisational policy. They will need to be role models for the behaviour they expect from staff.

• Consider linking your policy to an organisational commitment affirming the value of diversity – that is, principles that respect all employees.

• Look at supplementing your sex-based harassment policy with a broader anti-harassment policy, including the issue of workplace bullying.

• Integrate your policy with a code of conduct or code of practice that respects diversity and the rights of all employees. Have employees agree to this code of practice as part of their employment contract or workplace agreement.

• Liaise with staff or unions and consider incorporating protections against harassment into workplace agreements.

• Ensure that your line managers receive regular and up-to date training and actively support your policy.

• Ensure that new staff are trained in your policies and grievance procedures during induction, including pointing out who the contact officers are and what their role is.

• Ensure that managers are trained and are aware of unlawful termination issues related to harassment.

• Ensure that your policy covers all types of issues (eg. harassment via inappropriate use of e-mail or Internet, or workplace bullying).

• Ensure that your policy is related to other aspects of human resource management and that it is proactive in attempting to create a work environment free of harassment and bullying rather than reactive.

• Establish complaints procedures.

• Ensure that your complaints procedures are transparent and easy to follow.

• Ensure that your complaints procedures are accessible and widely publicised and that all staff feel confident to use them.

• Ensure that the complaint process is objective, for both the complainant and the respondent. Ensure that there is a right to appeal a decision.

• Consider having an independent arbiter built into the assessment of complaints.

• Communicate your procedures to managers and all staff.

• Put in place a network of harassment contact officers and ensure that these officers are trained in how to respond to requests for help in relation to harassment and diversity issues.

• Deal with all complaints promptly and confidentially.

• If harassment complaints are assessed as being other than sex-based, be prepared with a procedure for dealing with these also.

• Provide training to staff that are dealing with complaint resolution. Ensure that training encompasses issues related to managing diversity in the workplace.

• Ensure that staff involved are aware of legal risk issues.

• Insist that all staff keep matters confidential, with resulting disciplinary action if they don’t.

• Ensure that proven offenders are not simply transferred to another area or department a solution.

• If proven offenders remain with the organisation, require them to undergo further training and counselling.

• Ensure that all complaints, whether proven or false/misconceived, are managed appropriately and within the legislative framework.

• Be prepared to understand that situations can be perceived differently. Empathise with those who may find their work performance impaired by harassment.

• Provide support to people who are involved in a complaint.

• Ensure that making a complaint is not seen as prejudicial to an employee in terms of performance review or promotion opportunities.

•  Investigate what may lie behind a perception that there are personality differences or negativity within a work area.

• Recognise that a complaint may be evidence of other workplace or culture issues that require investigation and resolution.

• Ensure that the importance of a supportive work environment is taken into account when dealing with organisational restructuring or work organisation.

• Recognise that harassment or bullying can be subtle and psychological and not just overt or physical.

• Ensure that your policy is accessible to all staff. (For example, make sure it is displayed in a physically accessible location for all employees, and in alternate languages for employees who lack English fluency. Include the policy on your organisation’s intranet).

• Educate new staff and new managers on the organisation’s policy and complaint process on an ongoing basis.  Conduct refresher training for all employees regularly.

• Include the policy and procedure in your induction training for new starters.

• Educate your managers and supervisors on how to manage their people more effectively.

• Ensure that staff are aware of the consequences of breaching policy and of making false or misconceived complaints.

• Regularly review the number and make up of your contact officers and conduct refresher training and train new contact officers if current ones leave the organisation. It is important to have a mix of contact officers reflective of the diversity of the organisation eg. female and male, senior, junior, young, or more mature.

• Integrate harassment prevention training into mainstream management training. Ensure that training encompasses diversity principles – that is, respect for all employees – and recognises potential vulnerabilities of some employees (for example, women who may experience cultural or linguistic barriers to reporting harassment, young women who may be harassed by their immediate supervisor.)

• Keep a record of who has attended harassment training.

• Ensure that education campaigns promote better understanding of harassment and bullying so that staff feel comfortable raising issues, and are aware of the consequences of making false or misconceived complaints.

• Link results in this area to performance reviews and bonus allocations for managers.

• Effectively monitor outcomes of previous disputes to ensure that your resolution has been successful.

• Put strategies in place so that there are no incidences of repeat performances.

• Be aware of when problems may be more likely to arise (for example, the office Christmas party) and prepare accordingly, such as a reminder notice or e-mail to all staff who will be attending about expectations of their behaviour.

• Ensure that managers actively support the policies that are in place.

• Promote a workplace culture that is based on openness and trust, where behaviours that treat people with dignity and respect are valued.

• A lack of applications from female employees.

• A low proportion of women in management.

• A low proportion of women in non-traditional occupational roles eg. trades, labouring, plant and machinery operators.

• Problems retaining female employees.

Is the culture accepting of women employees at all levels and in all areas of the organisation?

Do you have an elected EO or Sexual Harassment Contact Officer on each site?

Do you ensure a sex-based harassment-free workplace?

Have you implemented and publicised a grievance handling mechanism?

Have you developed and publicised a sexual harassment and bullying policy and procedures?

Have you ensured that there are adequate grievance procedures, and that all management and supervisors have been trained in handling grievances?

Have you removed gender bias in all policy manuals and increased the availability of female facilities at all work sites?

Do you monitor progress by using exit interviews and staff surveys to see whether sex-based harassment remains an issue?

Has the organisation held sex-based harassment and bullying training sessions for all employees, backed up by a publicity campaign and further reminders at other training sessions?

Has your workplace culture tolerant of all forms of diversity? Do you need to implement general diversity training?

Is the appropriate behaviour and culture modelled by the leadership?

Is poor or inappropriate behaviour dealt with in accordance with the policy?

• As part of your cultural assessments and/or surveys, monitor issues such as workplace behaviours that may reflect a culture where harassment is prevalent.

•  Regularly review with your contact officers whether the system is working effectively and make any necessary changes. Ensure that you always have enough contact officers and that they are representative of all groups within your workforce.

• Have all mangers attended a face-to-face training session on their role and responsibilities in relation to harassment, discrimination and bullying within the last 12 months. Conduct refresher training every 18 months or so, and include elements of skill building.

•  Have all staff members attended a face-to-face training session on their role and responsibilities in relation to harassment, discrimination and bullying within the last 12 months?

• Review your team of Contact Officers. When did they last receive training? Do their communication and people management skills need updating? Is their demographic make-up reflective of those across your workforce?

• Ensure that managers are trained in implementing and managing flexible work arrangements so they are aware of the possible discrimination aspects.

• Ensure that completion of training is a mandated part of performance plans and that non-completion is followed up with a letter from the CEO.

• Hold and keep a record of regular, mandatory refresher training.

• Educate relevant staff in dealing with harassment from clients.

• Mandatory induction training should include all sessional and casual staff members.

• Check and review all current policies and procedures on harassment, discrimination and bullying to ensure that they reflect current legislation. Ensure the policies are regularly communicated and included in all new starter and new manager training sessions.

• Ensure that there is a policy on expected standards of email and Internet use and that this is issued to all staff upon commencement.

• Reinforce the organisation’s ‘zero tolerance’ stance during team meetings.

• Make sure that poor behaviour is appropriately dealt with and disciplined, even if the perpetrator is a very senior staff member.

• The CEO should distribute correspondence to managers to ensure that they and their staff attend relevant training on harassment and bullying.

• Information from the CEO should be mailed to all staff including the policy, procedures and standards which emphasise the organisation’s zero-tolerance stance.

• An escort service could be set up to take staff working evenings to the carpark/transport safely.

• Distribute emails to all staff members (managers included), reminding them about expected behaviour and conduct, for example prior to end of year celebrations.

• Conduct Staff Development Days or meetings that focus on diversity and the well-being of staff.

•  Include regular updates on policies and procedures to all staff in newsletters, emails and on the intranet.

•  Ensure that information on discrimination and harassment is included in handbooks or other publications on staff conduct and business ethics. These should be distributed to all employees.

• All staff should be provided with up-to-date information on policies and Contact Officers via a staff handbook, pamphlets or on the intranet.

• Additional information can be included with pay slips.

• All staff should be required to sign off on the organisational Code of Conduct as part of the acceptance of an employment offer. This includes temporary staff and contractors.

• Where staff are working on client sites, obtain sign-off from clients also on the organisational Code of Conduct and policies.