Whether you’re a male or female, you are a subject of harassment in the workplace. Sometimes, you don’t even know you’re being harassed, and you let it slide. And they will continue to do it, unless you get a harassment lawyers Melbourne to tell you how you can protect yourself or get them to pay for it.
Workplace bullying and harassment happen more frequently than you realise. Chances are high that you, your colleague, or someone you know has been a victim of harassment or at least bullying. It can be shocking when it happens, and you don’t know what to do. You’d feel fear that the harassment might continue if you don’t say anything, but you will also fear vengeance and losing your job if you do. It’s a tough situation to be in, which is why you need to know how to prevent it from happening to you in the first place.
Prioritise Prevention
Nothing bad happens if you prevent it from happening. The same can be said with bullying and harassment, they can certainly be prevented. Bullying and harassment normally happen in a workplace that has low morale and culture of disrespect. It’s very likely that occurrences of workplace bullying can be greatly minimised, if not eradicated altogether, if business morale and the many personalities that make up your workforce are taken into account.
The following are some strategies for preventing employee conflict and/or hostility with each other, which hopefully would lead you not needing the services of harassment lawyers Melbourne.
- Good work habits must be acknowledged, assessed, and rewarded fairly and consistently
- Friendships among employees should be encouraged, albeit with appropriate boundaries
- Employees should feel free to contribute ideas in an inclusive environment
- Hold employees accountable for their respective roles and monitor their productivity
- Employees should engage in company sponsored activities that will help them reduce stress and tension among themselves
Undergo Training
Not many employers take workplace bullying and harassment as seriously as they should. This is why only seldom does a company hold training regarding workplace bullying and harassment. For the few good ones, these employers have realised the importance of their employees having some basic knowledge of the subject, as it leads to prevention and eventually, high respect and morale within the workplace.
The training for workplace bullying and harassment should include basic questions and topics such as below:
- What is workplace bullying? What is workplace harassment?
- What gestures can be considered inappropriate within the workplace?
- What type of comments and/or remarks can be regarded as offensive?
- What attitudes when focused on a co-worker can be threatening?
- What forms can workplace bullying take? What forms can workplace harassment take?
Company Policies and Response Options
When employees come forward to report workplace bullying or harassment to their manager or supervisor, there should be a clear response forthcoming, and there should be company policy on bullying that can address the matter fairly and consistently.
Response Options: When confronted with evidence of workplace bullying, all employees, supervisors, and managers must have a menu of responses to choose from.
- There should be clear knowledge as to whom should employees report a workplace bullying
- There should be clear knowledge as to how and in what form should employees report a workplace bullying
- There should be clear knowledge for supervisors and managers as to what steps to take whenever reported to with a workplace bullying
Company Policies: For dealing with cases of workplace bullying, certain policies and procedures must be in place. Some examples of these policies are:
- Person who’s being bullied to provide a statement
- Person accused of bullying to have a confidential meeting with the immediate supervisor and the human resources representative
- If necessary, engage a third party to perform an impartial investigation into the incident, including all circumstances and persons connected to it
- Persons involved to meet and speak in a safe environment
- If necessary, engage a mediator who’s impartial to both parties involved to help settle the issue
- If guilt is established on the person accused, there must be a punishment ladder or sequence from initial warning up to eventual termination
To summarise, it must be emphasised that employers have an obligation to provide a safe working environment for all their employees. Employers are responsible for taking the necessary steps to keep their workplace safe for all employees physically, mentally, and emotionally. And employers must be aware of the workplace behaviour and should be able to intervene quickly and effectively in case an uncomfortable workplace incident happens.
As for employees, when bullying or harassment happens to you or someone you know in the workplace, it’s important to know how you can protect and defend yourself and your rights when you decide to speak up about the matter. Due to fear, you might not be able to think rationally, that’s why you need to see a harassment lawyer Melbourne to represent you.