Last December, Time magazine gave its award for person of the year to the “the silence breakers,” commemorating a broad societal awakening about the pervasiveness of sexual harassment in the workplace. As the #MeToo movement geared up, and as prominent men resigned or were fired, organizations rushed to create or update anti-harassment policies, complaint procedures, and training programs.
How HR and Judges Made It Almost Impossible for Victims of Sexual Harassment to Win in Court
Having a policy is often enough to avoid liability, even if it isn’t effective.
August 22, 2018
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Summary.
Many companies have policies and procedures for handling sexual harassment and discrimination claims. But are they actually effective in reducing incidents? Probably not, and the reason goes back to the way HR and the courts designed these policies and procedures in the first place. Research shows that, in large part, they were created to protect companies from appearing negligent in the eyes of the courts. In many cases, the mere presence of a policy is enough to rule for the employer, regardless of whether the policy is effective in stopping harassment.