You may spend most of your waking hours with the people you work with, but does that mean it's a good idea to sleep with them? What I find most interesting about this topic is that even in this day and age, the topic is evergreen. Here's what I mean.

In early 2004, I was invited to appear on The O'Reilly Factor, which airs on the Fox News station. The topic was sex in the office. Bill asked for my opinion as to whether or not I thought sex was happening in the office during work hours, as well as after hours. We also discussed sexual harassment in the workplace. What I didn't know at the time was that the producer, who brought me on the show, was allegedly being harassed by Mr. O'Reilly.

Fast forward six months later, and Bill's producer, Andrea Mackris, was accusing him of sexual harassment. Obviously Bill didn't listen to what I had to say. We never really learned if Bill was guilty or innocent, as he settled with Ms. Mackris for what is rumored to be a number well into the millions.

Now we have Mr. David Letterman in the spotlight. What these two people have in common is that they both have deep pockets. They can afford to pay millions in attorney fees and any settlements that may occur. Can you say the same thing?

As a manager, here are some key things you need to know about sexual harassment.

1. The definition of sexual harassment is based on a "reasonable" person's standard. Here's what this means. Suppose a woman files a sexual harassment claim against you for creating a hostile work environment. You and the guys may think it's OK to share jokes of a sexual nature, but if most women find these type of jokes offensive, then it falls under harassment.

2. If you are personally charged with sexual harassment, you can bet your bottom dollar that your company is not going to pay for a lawyer to defend you. That my friend will have to come out of your own pocket. Have you seen attorney fees lately?

3. Sexual harassment is not limited to the opposite sex. There are a number of cases of same-sex harassment. This means you better not ignore an employee who comes up to you and claims a co-worker of the same sex is sexually harassing them.

As a manager, your job is to create a workplace where your employees feel safe. That begins with you. Make sure you lead by example.

Roberta

Roberta Chinsky Matuson
President
Human Resource Solutions
413-582-1840
Roberta@yourhrexperts.com
www.yourhrexperts.com http://www.yourhrexperts.com

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