A DoubleTree Hotel in Jefferson City, Missouri, has realized that their cost of not taking a sexual harassment complaint seriously is $45,000 plus a list of actions they must take. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit against Vinca Enterprises, Inc., the company that operates this particular location, alleging that a female housekeeper repeatedly received offensive sexual comments and unwanted physical contact from a male room inspector and that management as well as an owner were aware of this but no one investigated or tried to stop it. As a result, the company will pay $45,000 plus be required to take a number of actions to prevent harassment and discrimination, including hiring a consultant, implementing policies and investigation procedures, and reporting to the EEOC any future sexual harassment complaints.
For leaders, the importance of taking sexual harassment complaints seriously and taking action once you’re aware of a complaint cannot be overstated. Who knows why no one at the DoubleTree investigated or did anything to stop this behavior, but I can guarantee you that the cost is greater than whatever their reason was, not to mention the impact to their reputation (which, in this case, would be the reputations of Vinca Enterprises, Inc., plus DoubleTree since people are more likely to remember the name DoubleTree).
What’s the role of managers when it comes to sexual harassment complaints? If you have an HR department, they will probably conduct the actual investigation, so there can be a tendency to think addressing sexual harassment is solely an HR function, but that’s not the case. You as a manager play an integral role in preventing and addressing this kind of behavior. You’re the leader your employees interact with on a daily basis, so your actions set the stage for whether sexual harassment will or won’t be tolerated and whether you respect your employees. Given the importance of your response to sexual harassment complaints, here are important items to remember and implement.
Treat others with respect. Preventing and addressing sexual harassment complaints isn’t just about staying out of court, although that’s a nice outcome. If that’s your only reason, you’ll have trouble effectively leading your team in the long-run because you’ll be missing a key element – this is about people. This is about treating people the right way. Sexual harassment is a form of disrespect. So, if you make sure everyone who works with and for you is treated with respect, you’ll be establishing a healthy environment that helps to prevent behaviors of disrespect.
Create a “zero tolerance” environment. Your employees will look to you to set the environment. Know your company’s harassment policy, and make sure your other leaders and direct reports know about it too. Make it clear what behavior is and isn’t acceptable, and encourage employees to report any concerns. The policy creates a foundation, but your daily actions must support this. If you tell everyone that inappropriate jokes aren’t acceptable but you laugh when others tell them in the break room, then you’re losing your credibility. If you allow inappropriate behavior to go on unaddressed, you’re communicating that the policy doesn’t mean anything. The environment you create and allow shows your employees whether sexual harassment is allowed.
Proactively address inappropriate behavior. If you see inappropriate behavior that you think may be harassment, address it. Don’t wait for a formal complaint. Also, keep in mind that something doesn’t have to escalate to the level of harassment for it to be inappropriate and disrespectful. Proactively addressing sexist comments or other disrespectful behavior can keep situations from escalating to harassment and helps maintain a healthy workplace culture.
Understand complaints come in various forms. An employee won’t typically come to you and say, “I’m here to formally submit a sexual harassment complaint.” More likely, an employee will express concern such as, “Someone said something at lunch that made me uncomfortable” or “I’d rather not meet with [name] by myself anymore.” These kinds of statements don’t automatically mean sexual harassment is happening, but they warrant more questions to find out what’s going on.
Complaints may not be about the employees themselves. Employees may also report something they saw happen to someone else, or they may report something they overheard.
You could receive complaints from remote employees as well, such as reports of unprofessional behavior during video conferences or inappropriate chat messages. Addressing these concerns the same way you would for on-site employees is an important element of managing the performance of remote workers.
Anyone can be the complainant, and anyone can be the harasser. We tend to think of a male boss sexually harassing a female staff member, but that’s not the only scenario. Anyone can complain (leader, staff member, customer, etc.). Similarly, anyone can be the harasser. So, you could have a male staff member complaining about his female boss, or a female staff member complaining about a male customer, or a female leader complaining about another female leader.
Respond openly to complaints, and don’t promise confidentiality. When an employee comes to you, how you respond sets the tone for everything that will happen next. So, when an employee reports a complaint, take the time to discuss and find out more.
- Thank you for letting me know. Tell me more about that.
- When did this happen?
- Have you reported this to anyone else already?
Avoid coming to conclusions. Your goal is to find out some details about what the complaint is and who it’s about. You’ll report this to the proper person, but knowing whether it’s already been reported helps you to know if any other employees already know about this too.
Let the employee know you’ll be reporting this. Sometimes, employees will want you to agree to confidentiality before telling you their concern. Don’t promise confidentiality because you may not be able to keep that promise. Assure the employee that you’ll use discretion but may have a responsibility to report a concern or take some kind of action.
Report any sexual harassment complaint. Take all complaints seriously, and report them as your policy outlines (which is typically to HR). Keep in mind that sexual harassment complaints may not necessarily follow the chain of command, especially if an employee is complaining about his or her boss, so you could receive complaints about other departments. Train any managers who report to you to take all complaints seriously as well. It’s not their job to determine whether the claim seems legitimate and warrants being reported. Every complaint should be reported immediately – same day. Otherwise, if harassment continues after it was reported, that can create major issues, as the DoubleTree is learning. The right people need to know so that proper investigation can occur.
Consider immediate adjustments, and ensure retaliation doesn’t occur. While the investigation is happening, you want to make sure no further incidents occur, so you may need to make some immediate adjustments to separate the complainant from the alleged harasser, such as changing work schedules or placing the alleged harasser on a leave of absence. Remind the alleged harasser of the expectation not to retaliate, and continue to monitor the situation to ensure there’s no retaliation. Regardless of the ultimate findings of the investigation, ensure retaliation doesn’t occur going forward by rounding and checking in periodically with the complainant.
Take corrective action. If the investigation finds sexual harassment occurred, follow your disciplinary policies to formally address it. Remember that inappropriate behavior should also be taken seriously, so address it even if it doesn’t rise to the level of harassment. “Zero tolerance” doesn’t necessarily always lead to termination, but it does mean that the behavior is always addressed.
Overall, the key is to expect that everyone be treated with respect, model that behavior, and promptly address anything that’s contrary to that. By remembering that this is ultimately about treating others the right way (and not about money or avoiding a lawsuit), you’ll be able to proactively notice inappropriate behavior and take seriously any sexual harassment complaints you receive.
Photo credit: By Kameleon007 / Canva
