“Too Delicate” for the Workplace?

A recent article on the HR.BLR.com website prompted quite a response by Suzanne Lucas, who blogs as Evil HR Lady. “Oh, cry me a river” she said over suggestions that employers take steps to ameliorate off-site harassment of female employees.

Our writer, who had attended a presentation by Holly Kearl, author of Stop Street Harassment: Making Public Places Safe and Welcoming for Women, suggested that employers could consider training, changing work hours, and arranging car pools.

“If you are so delicate that you can’t handle riding public transportation, then it’s certainly not your employer’s problem,” Evil HR Lady said.

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But It Is the Employer’s Problem

Unfortunately, it is the employer’s problem. Take flextime and telecommuting. There’s certainly no law, no regulatory requirement that employers offer either. But, in the end, with today’s demographics, it’s not really the employer’s choice.

If you need ceramics engineers, and they won’t come to you, you’ll have to go to them – and you now offer telecommuting. And if the people you want to hire and need to hire demand flexible hours, you’re going to offer them.

The same is true for in the situation of harassment during the commute.

First of all, you want to be able to hire the best people you can. If web reports suggest “It’s a little scary to get to work there” and “Don’t take a job there where you have to leave after dark,” your recruiting efforts are going to take a blow.

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And, similarly, you want to be able to retain good people once you get them. Remember, the better the employee, the more options the employee has, and what in-demand employee wouldn’t prefer to work in a place where he or she feels safe?

After reading Evil HR Lady’s blog, Kearl responded, putting it a little more delicately:

“Hmm. Certainly employers aren’t responsible for their employees’ safety during the commute, but I think the point is they should be aware that harassment along the commute could impact job turnover. And if they want to avoid that, they may want to consider doing something about the commuter, even if they aren’t obligated to.

“[Evil HR Lady’s] opinion that women are too delicate if this is a problem for them just shows how little this issue is understood.”

What Can You/Should You Do?

Every workplace is different and, obviously, some are more likely to encounter these problems than others. If you do sense or know of problems, however, and if they threaten your people, your reputation, your ability to attract and retain good employees, you will probably want to take action.

What can you do? First of all, you can make sure that people on your premises are secure and free from harassment. (You actually do have a legal obligation to do that under OSHA and Title VII/FEHA.)

You can take steps such as offering flexible schedules, carpooling, escorts, shuttles, whatever it takes.

You can ask your employees about their concerns. What bothers them? What could be done to help?

Then, you can train your people in how to deal with the difficult situations they might face.

Information Is Power

Whether it’s harassment, or bullying, or the myriad legal landmines you face in the age of social media, you as an HR professional need to be up on the most current developments to best protect both your employees and your company.

Plus, since you’re in California, your job is harder than it would be almost anywhere else.

That’s why we’re inviting you to join us at the Claremont in Berkeley this fall for a comprehensive three-day conference that will explain everything you need to know.

Now taking registrations for its 6th acclaimed year, the California Employment Law Update conference (CELU) is widely recognized as the leading California-specific employment law conference for forward-thinking Human Resources professionals, executives, and in-house counsel.

Here are just a few of the highlights we’ll be covering:

Employment Law Updates & Compliance Guidance

Expert legal advice for what you should do when the government comes knocking on your front door in search of workplace violations.

• The turbulent job market is fueling more job bias claims, and the EEOC and DFEH are busier than ever (with the EEOC collecting over a record $400 million in employer fines). Learn what it takes to stay to steps ahead of the Obama Administration’s steely enforcement resolve.
• The DOL’s Wage & Hour Division has a $244 million hyper-aggressive enforcement budget that has more agents looking into employee misclassification and other wage/hour violations. Are you prepared?
• The NRLB continues to flex its pro-labor muscles and is expanding its scope into companies’ social media activities. Are you on their enforcement list?
• The OFCCP’s full-throated enforcement priorities include more on-site reviews of government contractors’ employment practices, recovering over $67 million for unlawful discrimination claims. Find out whether your organization is immune from the agency’s increased spot inspections.
• The continuing uncertainty about the definition of “meals” and “breaks” has opened thousands of California employers up to potentially devastating wage/hour class actions. Could you be one of them?
• CONFERENCE BONUS: Get an up-to-the minute compliance update on the healthcare reform saga and what it means for your future employee benefits plans.

FMLA/CFRA Compliance Guidance

Get prepared for a new set of employee leave challenges.

• Up-to-the minute information for complying with the latest FMLA/CFRA changes and court interpretations.
• Complying with FMLA/CFRA’s maelstrom of paperwork requirements has never been more challenging. Find out how to manage the leave laws’ documentation compliance rules instead of them managing you.
• Learn how to successfully manage intermittent leaves and rein in potential abuses—without opening yourself up to legal liability
• Find out what you can request in terms of medical certifications—and how to get the information you need from less-than-cooperative providers
• Best practices for handling tricky return-to-work issues (including what happens when an employee has exhausted his or her leave but isn’t ready to come back to work)

Harassment, Bullying, & Retaliation Compliance Guidance

Keep workplace morale up and lawsuits down.

• The latest changes in federal law that make it easier for your workers to claim you’ve retaliated against them
• Your training obligations under A.B. 1825—are you in compliance with all of the nit-picky requirements?
• How to comply with the January 2011 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that’s expanded the scope of workplace retaliation claims (in favor of your employees)
• Tactics to make even the most aggressive bullies step back and get in line
• The policies and training you should implement now to head off harassment, retaliation, and bullying problems before they take root in your workplace

How to discipline employees effectively after they’ve filed a complaint, without crossing the line into retaliatory behav

Sign Up Today and Save $100

November may seem like a long ways off now, but it will be here before you know it. Plus, our early-bird deadline has just been extended through June 15 – so if you sign up now, you’ll save $100 off your registration.

Don’t put it off – sign up now, and rest easy in the knowledge that you’re taking care of business.

Download your free copy of How To Survive an Employee Lawsuit: 10 Tips for Success today!