Sexual Harassment Training Classes

In our Sexual Harassment Awareness training classes your employees will learn and apply the important skills of handling sexual harassment issues and complaints. This hands on class thoroughly addresses the elements of how to prevent unacceptable behavior. The class includes a detailed overview of what sexual harassment is, explains legal definitions, discusses sexual harassment prevention, and shows how to handle sexual harassment complaints and maintain a positive work environment.

For more information about individual sexual harassment training classes please complete this form. Once the form is received one of our consultants will provide you with a confidential proposal that will include a detailed description of the training class and the costs for conducting it.

Sexual Harassment Training Class: Understanding Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment is broadly defined as conduct of a sexual nature, which involves but not limited to:

• Use of obscenities and or vulgar, sexual language
• Referring to an adult as a boy or girl or babe
• Whistling at someone, cat calls
• Making graphic or sexual comments about someone's body
• Turning work discussions to sexual topics
• Telling sexual jokes or stories
• Sexual innuendoes
• Asking about sexual fantasies, preferences or history or sex life
• Repeatedly asking someone out on a date who is not interested
From the above details, we can see that sexual harassment could be verbal, non-verbal or physical. Some common examples are:
• Giving a massage around the neck or shoulders - unwanted physical contact
• Touching a person's clothing, hair, or body
• Hugging, kissing, patting, or stroking
• Touching oneself sexually in front of another person
• Hanging around a person
• Standing close, too close, to a person
• Forwarding, sending or displaying suggestive or sexual e-mails
• Giving someone a suggestive or sexually explicit letter, note or invitation
• Passing Around sexually suggestive cartoons or jokes
• Textual harassment - sexting
• Unwanted love letters
• Sexually suggestive calendars, posters and reading materials openly displayed • Looking a person up and down (elevator eyes)
• Staring at someone else's body
• Blocking a person's path
• Following a person
• Giving personal gifts (particularly those of an intimate or sexual nature)
• Making suggestive expressions such as winking, throwing kisses, or licking lips

In a broad sense, there are three different types of harassment in the work environment. These are:

• Harassment by a supervisor
• Harassment by a co-worker
• Harassment by a non-employee/vendor

Outside the work environment such as at schools, neighborhoods, there are other harassment types such as:

• Harassment by teachers
• Harassment by fellow students/pupils
• Harassment by cultists
• Harassment by bullies at schools/neighborhoods
• Harassment by close relations such as uncles, nephews, nieces, aunties and cousins

When any of the three broad types of harassment take place in a work environment, the victim should immediately:

• Report to the human resources officer in charge any form of harassment by an employee observed or that is reported to you by another employee.
• If the harassment is by a vendor/non-employee, it must be tackled immediately to put a stop to it to protect the employee
• An employer including her managers, supervisors or others in responsible position is legally liable for knowledge of harassment it knows or should have known about
• If an employer or a harassed employee is in doubt, they should report to the human resources who would liaise with the legal department or adviser to handle the next steps
• Harassment by a supervisor is a serious form of harassment and should be treated as such

In non-work environment harassment such from fellow students and pupils, teachers, cultists, bullies at schools, neighborhoods and villages and relations, incidents should equally be reported immediately to appropriate authorities such as:

• Parents
• School Principal
• Local Police
• Legal counsel
• Counselors - Career/Guidance
• Other persons in authority

Here are a few behavioral guidelines regarding sexual harassment that could help:

• Do not assume friendliness is equal to romantic interest
• Don't assume your behavior is okay just because nobody objected to it
• Don't treat the office as a dating site where to pick where to date - a high percentage of office romance always end in problems
• If someone object's to your behavior, stop it immediately and don't do it again • If something you want to say or do may not be appropriate for a professional environment, do not say or do it.

Source: Francis Nmeribe link