Does Harassment Happen if No One Is Around to Hear it?

How would you answer the age-old question, "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" I would answer yes! The same answer holds true for harassment! Whether harassment happens at an in-person happy hour event or in an online virtual happy hour, it still happens.

Remote working can create a situation of "not seen and not heard" when it comes to workplace policies, particularly harassment prevention policies. It's just as easy to send that inappropriate meme from home as it is to share it with the person in the next cubicle. In fact, it's often easier to share things digitally.

COVID-19 has introduced a remote work environment that includes dogs, children, partners, roommates, and other distractions that may not have been there before. If you have to yell at your kids, lock the dog in the garage, and put on a nice jacket before you get on that video chat, you may not be in the most "professional" state of mind once your meeting starts or even when it ends! Employees joking about whether they are wearing pants or teasing the less tech-savvy employees may give rise to complaints and/or co-workers who feel uncomfortable or left out.

Regardless of whether your employees work onsite or work remotely, leadership needs to encourage the reporting of harmful workplace issues so that they can be addressed as soon as possible.

Videos, Policies, and Resources

Our partner, ThinkHR, has created a short video to remind us of what is and is not appropriate with our new "virtual reality." While some rules have changed, harassment and discrimination rules have not. Ensure you are following your policies, keep your harassment training up to date, and have a trained investigator conduct prompt, objective, and thorough investigations. Even if an employee waits until July to report something that happened in March, you don't want to miss an opportunity to correct it.

CEA members can access a sample policy from our website.

All employers can find information about harassment prevention training options (mandatory by 12/31/2020 for all employees and supervisors if you have 5 or more employees) available to you.

Call CEA when you need trained investigators to conduct onsite or virtual, video-based investigations to ensure you meet your duty to promptly correct inappropriate workplace conduct!