How to effectively handle sexual harassment complaints at your organization

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As the workplace becomes more and more diverse,
there are several pros as well as some cons that
arise. The unconscious biases start manifesting
themselves in a bigger way when different people
come together in teams. One of the ways in which
such a bias shows up is sexual harassment because
of preconceived gender notions. Companies have
identified this as a big concern area but most of
them focus on the policy and compliance aspects
to handle this. While those form the foundation
and can be the starting point, here are some
other areas that need as much attention in order
to handle such complaints.
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Practices
What are the actual on-the-ground practices that
exist in your organization which firstly, allow
sexual harassment to take place and secondly,
prevent reporting of the same? This is usually
linked to work culture because that is what
actual actions impact. To handle complaints
effectively, you need to create practices or
encourage actions that foster a culture of
openness, trust and accountability. Employees who
undergo harassment should be able to report it
without hesitation. And those who are being
complained against should be made accountable,
through corrective organizational actions.  
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Programs
Having well-planned and frequent initiatives as
well as programs is important. Such initiatives
should focus on how employees should be open to
communication, the kind of channels that are
available for them to speak up and the role of
managers in handling such complaints.
Sensitization programs across the company are a
must so that everyone realizes the value that the
organization attaches to be a safe and equitable
employer.
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Processes
A lot of times while a policy is in place and so
is the Internal Complaints Committee, the
relevant processes are either too cumbersome or
not clear. Regular information about the process
to follow when submitting a sexual harassment
complaint, as well as details of what are the
post-complaint steps should be shared in
awareness sessions. Employees should be aware of
how their complaints will be taken forward and
the types of disciplinary actions assigned to the
offences.
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People
The training of the people who are the first
respondents such as the Managers as well as HR
representatives is crucial. In alignment with
that, having a knowledge and sensitive Internal
Complaints Committee makes the complaint handling
and resolution process much more
effective.    These are some major aspects that
all organizations must proactively work on so
that they can manage any kind of sexual
harassment complaints that arise.