How to Conduct an Effective Sexual Harassment Training
Oftentimes when we think about sexual harassment training, we think of the 1980’s videos of poor reenactments of what is acceptable and unacceptable in the workplace. The trainings are largely monotonous, and it is all about rules and regulations; we pay for our employees to sit through a training that is costly and ineffective.
There is a way to overcome these challenges and address our organization about sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is not only harmful and detrimental to the victim but also the culture of the organization. The culture, being the people that work within our company, department, or team. With more and more movements and initiatives coming forward and people speaking up, companies are in need to take the time to train their employees on sexual harassment for real. Not only does sexual harassment create toxicity and pain in a company, but also it can be extremely costly to an organization. 56.6 million dollars was spent on benefits from sexual harassment lawsuits in 2018.*
Companies need to adjust their training accordingly. We need fewer PowerPoint slides and more talking; we need clear policies and procedures being laid out.
Training should be more conversational, interactive, and customized to fit the culture of the organization. There needs to be a best practice list and a clear list of infractions to be reviewed and discussed. We need to take into account the different generations, cultures, races, ethnicities, genders, and language barriers. We want to create a big impact and have applicable tools that employees can use immediately after the training.
Below is our full checklist for your next sexual harassment training:
| Training Requirements to Be Fulfilled | Check Box |
| Be Interactive: Have facilitated discussions, brainstorming group, and interactive PowerPoint slides. | ✔ |
| Define sexual harassment as a form of unlawful discrimination under local law with examples and terminology. Be clear and specific. | ✔ |
| Go over the law and be clear. Create a list of appropriate statements, responses, and behaviors. Then review the inappropriate statements, responses, and behaviors. | ✔ |
| Roll out an internal complaint process with forms, templates, and a guide on how to report sexual harassment. Make it available to all employees and create a virtual training that any employee can revisit. | ✔ |
| Develop content concerning bystander and strategies to intervene, and resources that explain how to report incidents. | ✔ |
| Understand the specific responsibilities, roles, and process that is expected of management. | ✔ |
Therefore, to make sure you are creating training that is, engaging, helpful, applicable and aligns with your corporate culture. You want to create a training that will be insightful and impactful, so make sure you do your research before you invest in any program.
For more questions about trainings, policies, or procedures, please contact me at kortney@peagramconsulting.com.
We are here to support!
Until Next Time…
Kortney Peagram, Ph.D
Owner/Founder Peagram Consulting & Bulldog Solution Inc.
Kortney@peagramconsulting.com
773-559-4500
