21/06/2020 Video Transcript

A Question of Sexual Harassment

Ed Evarts

Complaints about inappropriate behavior permeate the workplace, and it's

very important to note that sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination
and is illegal. So as a manager working to navigate your way through this
complex world of sexual harassment, there's three things that I'd like you to
keep in mind as you consider complaints that might come to your attention.

The first thing is that not all complaints are a complaint from the person being
impacted. It could come from your own observations of the behavior of
others, or it could come from a third-party--a coworker, someone who's
observed the behaviors of others that they deem inappropriate. So keep in
mind that a complaint isn't always from the person who has been impacted
but might be through your own observations or through the observations of a
third-party.

The second thing you want to keep in mind is that once you're notified of
some type of inappropriate behavior, your company has been notified. So you
as a manager or executive within an organization are considered in the eyes
of the law to be an agent of that company. So to state it again, if you've been
told about the event, your company has been considered told about the event,
and appropriate, quick, and thorough action must then be taken.

The third thing to keep in mind when a complaint has been brought your
attention and recognizing that you're an agent of the company and hence your
company has been notified, is to get a partner. Taking action on your own is
not going to be the best course of action.

Going to HR--to human resources--letting them know that there's been a

complaint within your office and within your work environment, and allowing
them to go through the process and procedures to investigate the claim
thoroughly will help the situation resolve itself most appropriately. HR will look
into the situation in a very thorough way, they'll do it in a very quick way, and
the goal for them is to come out with a thorough answer on the best way to
proceed and move forward. So trying to lone gun it and handle it on your own
is not to be the best strategy as much as it is going to human resources and
talking with them and getting a partner with them in order to address the
situation appropriately.

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