Is Your Small Business Ripe for Sexual Harassment?

Heather Legg

January 27, 2014

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Sexual harassment is a serious matter and can occur anywhere, from schools and universities to corporations and small businesses.

Any instance of sexual harassment needs to be taken seriously and followed through. Just because your business is small and your employees trusted, doesn't mean that it can't happen.

Sexual harassment may come from outside influences, such as customers or delivery people. It doesn't have to be from the opposite sex and it may be effect those not in the direct line of it, but those that witness it as well. It is still sexual harassment if it occurs outside of work hours, such as at parties or at other work related events.

As a small business owner, what signs can you look for to detect sexual harassment and what can you do to prevent it?

Just one instance can impact your business negatively, and how you deal with it can make a big difference.

Detecting Sexual Harassment

You can keep your eye out for certain signs of sexual harassment, some obvious, some not so much, and deal with them when you see them. You can possibly stop something from getting too serious.

Look for signs such as:

• Employees avoiding other employees or groups.

• Postings (online or in office) of inappropriate pictures or jokes/stories of a sexual, offensive nature.

• Gruff and/or offensive language; sexually explicit jokes and/or comments.

• Inappropriate displays of a physical nature between employees (it can be offensive to other employees even if both the acting employees are consenting).

• Overly physical or inappropriate touching where you sense someone is uncomfortable (a delivery person who hugs your workers).

• Any new, unusual behavior that may indicate someone feels uncomfortable or even scared.

Preventing Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment policies and awareness material should be given to each employee and posted in open areas of the business.

The material should include a thorough description of sexual harassment, examples and what to do if experiencing sexual harassment, including who to go to and how to file a complaint.

Never let it Be Tolerated

You should also make it clear that any such harassing behavior is not acceptable in your business and will not be tolerated.

It is a good idea to have meetings every so often to go over the definitions and situations of sexual harassment.

You can describe procedures for filing complaints, what constitutes sexual harassment and what doesn't, and what type of disciplinary measures will be taken if an employee is found to be taking part in sexual harassment.

Let your employees know they can come to you (or another designated person) and their complaints will be taken seriously. Your employees should feel safe in their work place.

As a small business owner, this is your responsibility.

It's better to set ground rules upfront along with consequences and try to prevent and avoid any sexual harassment rather than have to deal with situations which may arise.

However, if they do, you are the one that needs to take charge and act on it before it brings down your small business.