Hello. I'm wanting this session in which we're going to look at the topic of sexual harassment. We're going to start off by understanding how the harassment is defined legally on. Then we're going Teoh Lick at the way that allegations of harassment should be addressed in the organization, thinking about issues such as policies and procedures. How to support an individual through the process. Onda also thinking about grievances. Harassment has become a big topic, and, as you may have listened to some of the debates that there have been in the media about behavior, whether it is or isn't harassment, one thing that definitely I've noted is that people have very different views on what is and isn't acceptable behavior. What we in the workplace need to think about is the definition of harassment in the law, and harassment is defined in the equality at 2010 as unwanted conduct related to irrelevant protected characteristic, which has the purpose or effect of violating an individual's dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that individual. So what I'd like to do is just go back over some points about this definition. First of all, it's unwanted conduct, and there is an element here by which we are thinking about what the individual feels about what is going on. So if an individual says, I don't want this to be happening, it shouldn't happen. So there is a certain subjectivity to the definition. Almost. You could have a situation where you've got an open plan office on. There's a certain amount of banter going on. Andi. Some employees find a great fun and join in and love it. Another employees actually find it to be offensive. If an employee finds that offensive, it should stop related to a relevant protected characteristic on within the equality. At 2010 there are just nine protected characteristics. Age, disability, gender reassignment, marital status and pregnancy. A marital status is your partnership. Sorry. Maternity and pregnancy, race, religion, belief, sex and sexual orientation. Now, if the behavior relates to something else, then it's no. A claim of harassment there could be ruled under the equality at 2010 but it doesn't mean that it's acceptable behavior in the workplace. There still should be a question mark over whether there needs to be some intervention. So if, for example, somebody is teased endlessly about the football team that they support. That is no a protected characteristic under the equality at 2010. But if the employee is getting distressed about this and it sort of moved beyond a little bit of banter into something where the employees really isn't happy on, the employer knows that does nothing about it. The employees could argue that it's a breach of the implied term of mutual trust and confidence, the implied term that the employer will look after the employees in the workplace. So that's the first bit of the definition, the purpose or effect next words that I wanted to Palau. It doesn't matter what the person who is doing the harassment intended. So it could be that there is an employee who keeps commenting on another employees appearance and saying how lovely she looks, and she finds that rather uncomfortable and just doesn't want that attention now, the alleged harasser in this situation, the person making those comments might have no intention whatsoever of harassing. I may actually think that what they're doing is very nice because they're complimenting the individual. But if it has the purpose or effect of violating the individuals dignity, then it can be harassment. The other thing to notice from those important words is that it doesn't have to be behavior that is directed at an individual. So if it has the purpose or effect off a violating dignity, or if the behavior is creating this intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment, it doesn't matter whether it's directed at the individual. They could still bring a claim of harassment. For example, let's say that an individual works in an open plan office on There is a lot of teasing oven employees whose homosexual on the employee who is homosexual finds it quite a phone joined him with it doesn't find it offensive at all. But there is another employee who is or isn't almost. Actually, it doesn't matter who finds it'll a bit a bit offensive, a bit rude, a bit degrading, a bit humiliating. They could still bring a claim of Houseman, even though that behavior is not directed at them. Onda. We also again come back to this subjectivity, intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive what you find to be intimidating, hostile etcetera on what I do might be different. That's no important What is important is that if somebody is finding it offensive, it should stop so that I hopefully give some insight into what Harris Hman is. And of course, in today's session, we're focusing primarily on sex harass moon. But it could be harassment relating toe any of the protected characteristics. Now it is important that an organization has a harassment policy, and it's important for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's important say that an individual who is on the receiving end of Harris Hman has some way of knowing what they can do about it on. It's also important that if somebody is accused of harassment, they can go and see what the process is on what the employer is going to do. Because it could be that the person that's accused of harassment is hugely upset by this that have already said they thought they were just having a bit of final will, saying something nice and on DNA. Now they're facing a harassment claim and on they are really, really distressed by that really distress that their behavior has been interpreted in that way. And it's important that we remember that that there are some people who engaged in harassment on Do they do it? Teoh upset people, but there are others that don't. So what should ah harassment policy include when it should include examples of harassment? Now, this should always be clearly stated as thes are examples. And they are not an exhaustive list, because if the policy says hi, Wissman is on, gives a list of examples, and then somebody does. Something that's not on that list is gonna be very difficult to argue that it's harassment. So it always should say these are examples. And then no, an exhaustive list on examples of harassment could be inappropriate comments. It could be touching. It could be excluding people from events because over protected characteristic, all these sorts of things could be a potentially harassment excuse. May on the policy should say what the individual should do and should give them some options. Most policies are probably going to say that the first step for the individual is to raise the issue with their line manager. But what if it's a line manager that's during the Harris Hman? Then there should be an option to go and talk to someone else. Or what if it is sexual harassment on the line. The individual is a woman. He's used to think the complainant, the person who's being harassed on the line, manages a man and he's great. And he's not doing anything that could be seen as Harris Moon. But the employees just doesn't feel comfortable talking about it with a man. This should be the option. There is well of talking to somebody off the same gender. So reports of the line manager, or if that is not appropriate for the employees, doesn't want to do that. Then the ship of the option of talking to another manager of the same sex as the person who's being harassed or if there is an HR department going and talking to the HR department and then the policy should set out what the employer is going to do and the first step always have to be an investigation. Know that anybody is saying if you raise a complaint of harassment, we won't believe you, but there has to be an investigation because the employer has a duty of care to both the person who's being harassed onto the person who's an alleged harasser, and it's important that at first there is innocent until proven guilty. And so the investigation is approached with an open mind on and the, uh, policy should set how, how the investigation will be carried out on that. Then there'll be a meeting with the complainant to talk about the findings of the investigation on. But the complainant will be told what action is being taken with regard to the respect, the confidentiality for the harasser as well. So it may be that the employer isn't going to tell the person who's been harassed exactly the full detail of the conversation that's been held with the person who did the harassing. And the policy should also say that if harassment has taken place, the organization will take that very seriously on. That could be a disciplinary offence on In serious cases, it could lead to the summary dismissals of dismissal without notice off the harasser. Now, of course, a procedure will still be gone through, so the policy is going to refer the reader to the disciplinary policy as well. But if what has happened is gross misconduct, then the employer doesn't have to go through the process of disciplinary warnings. If what has happened is unacceptable, but not seriously enoughto warrant dismissal. Then it should say that the individual might be given a disciplinary warning on, Of course, all the time. We're using language like might happen because it depends on the circumstances on what has has been discovered from the investigation. What should you do if somebody comes on and tells ye that they're being harassed? First of all, it's about listening to the individual. I'm being empathetic. So if listening carefully to what they're saying to being supportive. But it's really important to at this stage to be supportive, not to doubt what they're saying. But to be aware that the organization is going to have to carry out an investigation so you shouldn't be making any promises that oh yes, on the alleged harasser will be called in today. They'll be suspended on. They'll be dismissed until the investigation has happened. It's not possible for you to make any confirmation of what's going to happen as a result, guide the individual about what action they should take. Andi here. It might be useful to look at the harassment policy together on to read through it with your colleague Andi to point out what they should be doing. It's also important for you to think about what's being said to you on how much you can keep confidential now if the individual comes to you and says, I don't want you to tell anybody about this, but I'm being harassed. Your response should be I will respect confidentiality. But if what you're telling may means that there are other employees involved, other employees, particularly more junior employees who might not have the confidence to speak her, who are also being harassed well, if what you're saying is so serious that it it just cannot continue, then I might feel that regardless of the fact that you know, you're begging me not to tell anyone I've got to and if so, I will agree with you, who I'm going to talk to on. I'll tell you what I'm going to say, and I will respect your confidentiality as much as I can. But if what you tell me is your being harassed and so is somebody else and that somebody else doesn't have the confidence to speak up, then it might be that I've got to speak up on also you might want to sign posi individual to support, and it's really important to remember that counseling is is a skill. It's something that councillors are trained to do. And unless you're a trained counsellor, you haven't had the appropriate training to help the person work through what's happening. Andi. Therefore, it's important to sign post the individual toe where they can get support if your organization has an employee assistant program. So eso an outside organization that employees can phone up and talk to confidentiality and maybe seek some counseling from you might want to sign posi individual there. Remember that there are organizations such as the Samaritans, who will listen to anybody who is distressed. It doesn't have to be somebody who is so distressed that it's making them ill more that they're thinking of harming themselves. The Samaritans can help at any stage. It might also be that you recommend to the individual that they go and talk to their to their GP to their doctor. But don't get into giving counseling if you don't have the skills and the training to do that in your support in the organization, it's important that you explain to the individual that there will be an individual investigation on Do you help the complainant to understand what is happening are any formal meeting. So if the individual that has come to you for support races a formal grievance, they are allowed to be accompanied at the formal meeting by a colleague or a trade union representative. So if you're asked, will you come along and be my representative? Then you can do that if you want to an informal meeting. So this could be where an employee says, Well, I'm gonna go and talk to my line manager about it on. I'm just gonna have an informal chat first for because I want to understand what's going to happen if the employer asked you to go along with them to that meeting because it's not a formal meeting, then legally, they have no right to have a representative. But in most organisations, it would be accepted that somebody might want have a colleague there with them again if you're asked to go along. Um, if the employer agrees to that, you can, if you want to, on what you should be doing at this meeting is being that second care of ears because in a situation off Harris Moon, it's quite often the case that somebody is very distressed, so they might actually know here. All that said, I don't mean physically not hearing, but because they're distressed, then they might not just take it all on board. So what you can be is that second pair of ears you're less involved with what's going on, so you're going to be less distressed and make notes. So there, after the meeting, you can talk to the individual about what was said and clarify any points of confusion. Um, at a formal meeting, you can ask questions on behalf of the individual. You can put on the facts that the individual once communicated. You can do that for them. But if the employer said to the individual, I want you to answer this question, I want you to tell May then they can request that. So don't take over the meeting. But I think if the sorts of questions or points that that you think the individual needs to have the answer to it, maybe what's going to happen next is ah, a very straightforward question. Andi, ask those questions and take Neitz so that you can remind the individual of what's being said. And it is important, as we've said, that the alleged harasser is treated fairly and they are innocent until the investigation has happened. Andi, it's been clue did that there no innocent? And it might be that the investigation concludes what has been alleged YSL completely wrong. So it's important. But if the person that's come to you for support is the person that's alleged harassment, that you don't react to the alleged harasser in any way differently to what you normally would have done, don't get involved in discussions or arguments with them. I was going to be an investigation that's going to be carried out and allow that to take place. If you did get involved on, did you did start throwing allegations around. It could compromise the investigation, and of course, you could be in a situation when you're supporting the individual. But the person that comes to you for support is a person that's being accused of harassment. So it could be somebody who is hugely distressed because have been accused of harassment. They say it's all a pack of lies or they say a what happened did happen. But the way has been interpreted is never the way that it was men again. If the individual is called to a formal meetings or for disciplinary meeting, they're entitled to be accompanied by a colleague or a trade union representative. And you could be asked to be that person. And again, it's the same role, the second pair of ears, but taking notes asking questions as appropriate. But again, be professional. Support your colleague. If if that is what you think is right to do on, don't get involved in going and approaching the person who's made the allegations. Andi getting into on argument or debate with them about whether what has happened is harassment or no, Keep away from my because there will be an investigation on that deal with any role allegations that have been made. Now there is the acres code of practice, disciplinary and grievance procedures that employers have to follow on. This does set out a grievance procedure that has three simple steps. The complainant rights to the employer, setting out the issues in writing. The employer arranges a meeting to discuss the issue. Andi, then is most likely going to have at least two meetings because, first of all, they're going to hear what the complaint is, and then most likely they're going to have to return to go away and investigate on. Then they're going to come back and talk to the individual about what action, if any, they're going to take on. If the complainant is not happy with the outcome, then then they can appeal that outcome. Now it's over, already said. If that's a formal meeting, then legally, under the employment relations at 1999 the individual is entitled to have a colleague or a trade union representative with them on. Do you could be present along those meetings. If you're asked to be the representative, it could be useful to encourage somebody that comes to you to put their grievance in writing on to set out everything that's happened. The different incidents. If there's been a number off them, the dates, if they have that recollection, just so it gives the employer very clear explanation of what the complaint is. However, if your colleague doesn't do that, it doesn't mean that the employer does not have to investigate. They have a duty of care to all employees, and if there's alleged harassment, then it would have to be investigated. And finally, it's just where a worth thinking about harassment. As I said at the start, it's a topic that has become talked about a lot with the me too campaign, which has come about following allegations very serious allegations of harassment and sexual a soul in in the media sector. What is the culture of your organization? What is acceptable behavior? What is the behavior of senior management like, Do they set an example that clearly shows that harassment is no acceptable in your organization? Is there a robust response of anything that appears to be harassment? One person on their own can't change the culture of an organization, but they can challenge you and they can bring to management's attention examples of things that are clearly unacceptable and need addressing Andi. Really addressing the culture of an organisation such as harassment is just not acceptable is an important first step in making sure that harassment just doesn't happen in the organization. So thank you for listening, and I hope that you found that useful
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