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Managing Rumors of Sexual Harassment

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I have found out through the grapevine that one of our employees has been (allegedly) sexually harassed. What should I do?

Take action. If you have heard, through whatever means, that there has been a situation in your company in which an employee was sexually harassed, you are legally obligated to take action in order to protect that employee. Keep in mind that victims of sexual harassment may not come forward to inform you about the situation. Often, victims feel as if they will not be believed or they feel that reporting the situation could cause them more problems (they could be shunned by other employees, they could be punished by the person that they accuse, etc). As such, when you heard about a situation in which an employee has been treated in a harassing manner, you need to take action.

It is okay to approach an employee that is an alleged victim of sexual harassment. Be sure to be gentle with the employee, as he or she may already be uneasy about the situation. Ask open-ended questions if it makes you feel more comfortable, but be sure that you feel satisfied that you get the answers that can help you get to the bottom of the situation.

If the employee does admit to you that he or she has been sexually harassed, then you should begin your investigation into the sexual harassment immediately by taking a written statement from the alleged victim, from the accused, and from witnesses. You should then weigh all evidence and come to some sort of conclusion, which may include disciplining the accused if he or she is found to be guilty.

If the alleged victim says that sexual harassment has not occurred, then you can help to quiet the rumors by educating employees about the dangers of inter-office gossip. In any event, make sure that when such gossip is circulating, you address it by highlighting anti-sexual harassment policies, creating anti-sexual harassment (and anti-gossip) memos, and having training sessions if you feel they are needed. Whatever the result of your steps, you should be sure that you are on top of the potentially harmful grapevine news.