Keep it safe!

High profile cases of sexual harassment in the press have certainly had an impact in the Indian workplace. An increasing number of Indian corporate firms have now stopped pushing issues under the carpet and instead, address them as important business issues. This, not only creates a ‘healthy’ work environment, but also safeguards against, reputational, operational and legal risks.

All this and more was discussed at our "No Excuses for Sexual Harassment" workshop, conducted in Delhi on the 25th of July this year. This was our fifth workshop on the subject and was well received by over 30 participants, representing 21 corporations. Mr Som Mittal, President, NASSCOM, opened the session and impressed upon the participants, the need for better awareness and understanding on the subject.

The workshop focussed on educating employers on their responsibilities on recognising and preventing sexual harassment in the workplace. The interactions with the participants, and the candid exchange of experiences during the training, were indeed eye-openers for many participants, some of who came forth with first-hand experiences. The session was followed by a sharing of best practices from organisations that had robust practices in place. A legal perspective was provided on all these cases, by a lawyer panel member.

We are glad to note that HR professionals present in the room were unanimous that although employees may cringe at the thought of having anything to do with sexual harassment, it is important to educate them on the occurances and types of sexual harassment. Most cases, unless voiced by the victim or another employee, go undetected and breed scared, unhappy employees, often leading to attrition. In other instances, the harassment matters get out of hand and attract unwanted media attention and legal wrangles.

Verbal and non-verbal advances, quid pro quo harassment, and harassment of male employees are no longer rare occurrences and are potential legal exposures in the office environment. Employers therefore are establishing policies to create respectful work places as part of their business mandate. This workshop was an important step towards this.

We, at Interweave, sure look forward to hearing the success stories emerging from there. Do keep us posted!