Unfortunately, the social nature of the workplace can make it difficult to report harassment. Certainly, reporting a coworker over harassment is the most obvious course of action; however, this path is not so easily followed. If charges are invalid, a coworker will face unjust scrutiny and, possibly, loss of income from suspension, while false charges of harassment can also be very damaging to a person’s reputation and create resentment that undermines the workplace. If harassment charges are valid, a coworker may well lose his or her job. Faced with either circumstance, this creates a lot of resistance when it comes to reporting harassment that can only be solved by management stepping up to the plate.
From constantly bothering coworkers to sexual harassment, the workplace is no place for this type of inappropriate behavior. Beyond the harm done to individuals, harassment undermines the work community. Instead of doing their jobs, employees are focused on the drama created by workplace harassment. This generates friction between the different subcultures within the business as well as the individuals involved. The workplace requires employees to connect as a team by developing relationships, but this unhealthy behavior hurts these relationships. Managers, therefore, need to guarantee employees have all the opportunities they need to covertly report incidents while they must monitor the workplace and proactively address conflicts.
Meanwhile, coworkers, who harass others, disrupt the work environment by undermining the performance of individuals. For those being harassed, staying focused is more difficult while harassment can create greater division among the various subcultures found within the workplace. The lone wolf, who bullies others, can use harassment to upset the entire workplace, yet many bullies force themselves into a leadership role. Singling out individuals to pick on creates even greater instability and a lack of safety. In addition, it weakens the credibility of supervisors by demonstrating they have no control over the workplace. This means those being harassed may feel intimidated when it comes to reporting harassment, so managers must be more aggressive when it comes to controlling harassing behavior.
On the other hand, workplace harassment takes on many forms from simple harassment to sexual harassment and can come from any employee, including the boss, so it is difficult to address. Managers and supervisors, who constantly intimidate, belittle, and push employees to their breaking point are guilty of harassment. For weak workers, this behavior makes them less productive and/or diminishes their ability to function at their full capacity. For stronger employees, harassment can result in resentment and spiteful behavior like weakened performance, sabotage, disruptive confrontations, and efforts to undermine leadership. As such, subordinates must have a more direct line to file complaints with other managers and human resource officials.
In more serious scenarios like sexual harassment, personal relationships in the office can often lead to inappropriate behavior. For those who flirt in the workplace, charges of sexual harassment may follow. Because sexual harassment can easily result from an obsessed coworker failing to respect boundaries, such cases must be taken very seriously as they can lead to stalking or assault. As such, aggressive flirts, who go too far, should be explicitly told to stop by the recipient of the unwanted attention then reported if a perceived danger exists. Once reported, the employer must then take action that should include reviewing whether or not the employee might need to be reassigned to another position, or terminated.
Of course, it is also important to remember situations exist where one person finds another individual attractive, yet those feelings are not reciprocated. Because these scenarios are often unclear, one person’s natural inclination toward kindness or friendly flirting can lead a serious suitor to the wrong conclusion. Certainly, most people are aware of these misunderstandings, thereby making the situation even more awkward. Since acting on a misunderstanding can easily lead one employee to the wrong conclusion, employers must fully investigate harassment charges in order to determine whether or not they are valid. In tandem, a sense of fairness will help encourage employees to report harassment as charges will be investigated and acted upon with a reasonable response.
Addressing harassment in the workplace can create a great deal of friction, thus management may be inclined to ignore the problem out of convenience. Every time a manager has to waste time dealing with a conflict he or she is distracted from professional concerns. This creates resentment against employees. Acting against an employee also angers the accused while doing too little frustrates the victims of harassment. Then again, the damage caused by harassment, as well as the potential lawsuits for failing to act, dictates managers need to act on claims of harassment made by employees. This means reporting harassment must be part of a fair process that seeks to protect all employees from undue harm, while punishing those who have done wrong, in order to create a safe work environment.
