Harassment is defined as a form of discrimination and encompasses any unwelcome conduct, whether physical, verbal, or nonverbal, which interferes with an individual’s job performance, creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment, or otherwise affects the individual’s well-being and mental health. Harassment can include offensive jokes, insulting remarks, physical conduct, or even gestures.
Harassment can occur in many forms, in person, online, or even in text messages. Examples of explicit harassment include unwanted sexual advances, use of derogatory language, frequently repeated offensive jokes, threatening or intimidating behavior, and creating a hostile environment. Additionally, even less overt behavior like excluding someone from social events or spreading rumors about them can constitute as a form of harassment.
No matter your position in a company, harassment is never acceptable. In order to cultivate a healthy, welcoming, and safe environment, business must enforce anti-harassment policies that outline clear reporting procedures. If a supervisor witnesses, receives reports of, or suspects that harassment is occurring, it’s the manager’s responsibility to investigate the situation and take prompt action to resolve it.
Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in their workplace. Harassment is an unwanted behavior that must not be tolerated in any form.