Have you held your annual harassment training?

In 1998, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two decisions that have had tremendous impact on business. These decisions, known as Faragher and Ellerth, set standards regarding sexual harassment in the workplace. While the Faragher and Ellerth decisions clarified definitions of sexual harassment, the real impact of the cases involved who was liable for harassment when it occurred.

In Faragher, the court ruled that the employer was liable for harassment regardless of whether or not the company was aware of the behavior. In Ellerth, the court declared that harassment could occur even if there was no tangible detrimental impact on the job of the person being harassed.

While these decisions seemed to make life more difficult for employers, the court provided a clear defense. This defense has two parts: The company can show that 1) it used reasonable care to prevent harassment and 2) the employee failed to make the issue known to proper authorities in the company.

In one of the written decisions, the court specifically cited the employer for not providing adequate training. This sent a clear message to companies throughout the country that failure to adequately train supervisors and employees regarding all aspects of sexual harassment in the workplace deprives the company of its most effective defense.

To paraphrase a Nation’s Business article that appeared soon after the decisions, as a result of the Supreme Court’s most recent sexual harassment rulings, companies of any size must have sexual harassment training for supervisors and employees. (Nation’s Business, December 1, 1998, p. 18.)

With over 25% of all discrimination and harassment suits costing businesses in excess of $1,000,000 each, conducting a carefully developed sexual harassment seminar for supervisors and employees will be time and money well spent.

Contact BAI consultant Allen Miller today at 801.444.9919 for to schedule harassment training for your organization.