This article explores a critical policy conundrum Most organizations have sexual harassment policies, most employees are aware of such policies; there appears to be widespread agreement regarding the behaviors which constitute sexual harassment, and, substantial numbers of employees experience sexual harassment Yet, formal reporting rates are extremely low Several alternative "causes" of this conundrum are explored, that employees are not knowledgeable about procedures, that they prefer informal solutions, that victims fear or know of negative reactions to complaints, that incidents were judged to be too "minor" to warrant complaint, or that victims are reluctant to acknowledge that they are indeed victims of sexual harassment. Survey responses from employees in two public sector organizations indicate that fear of possible negative consequences and an unwillingness to admit to "victimhood" reduce formal reporting and hence represent roadblocks to full implementation of sexual harassment policies.
Research has found both age and gender to be significant factors in howemployees evaluate sexual harassment policies. The presence of different perspectives on sexual harassment amongmen and women of different age groupsmay have significant implications for the implementation of sexual harassment policies. To the extent that older employees aremore likely to be in positions of authority or supervision, they are a critical link in the design and implementation of effective policies. Using a survey of 595municipal employees, this article concludes that there are significant age group differences amongmale and female employees regarding perceptions of sexual harassment, attitudes about model policy and procedure, and evaluations of workplace policies. Specific policy recommendations are posed to address these critical employee and supervisor differences.
This paper explores satisfaction with sexual harassment policies in public sector workplaces, using a survey of municipal employees to address the following policy questions'.1. What types of sexual harassment policies do employees want? 2. How would employees handle complaints of sexual harassment? 3. How satisfied are employees with current workplace policies? 4. What appears to enhance policy and process satisfaction?It concludes that public sector organizations should:• Include confidentiality protections and sanctions in policies; • Require that parties to a complaint be fully informed of the outcome; • Increase awareness and knowledge of policies through employee training;• Train supervisors in interpersonal skills and investigatory processes;• Utilize teams to investigate allegations of sexual harassment; and, • Understand that training and process implementation issues are more important to employee satisfaction than the policy itself.• "Do not use a zero tolerance policy;"• "Lie detector tests should be mandatory;"• "Three people should investigate as a team -no cover ups;" • "The organization should act on the policy, right now they are only words;" • "Start over." Eastern Michigan University Ypsilanti, Mich. 48197 Karen.lindenberg@emich.edu Karen E. Lindenberg is Professor Emeritus of political science at Eastern Michigan University and was Director of the MPA Program. Her research has focused on public per sonnel management and labor arbitration. She has over 25 years of experience as a griev ance and arbitration advocate and in collective bargaining negotiations, and is a trained mediator. Her most recent publications focus on sexual harassment policy and implemen tation. Retired from academia, she is now a full-time labor arbitrator.
This article assesses the relative importance of sexual harassment policy and training on positive outcomes in public sector organizations by asking whether policies and training can increase satisfaction with the implementation of sexual harassment policies, whether employees are more likely to be satisfied with particular policies, whether policies and training can increase the reporting of sexual harassment, and, ultimately, whether policies and training can reduce the prevalence of sexual harassment in public sector organizations. Based on surveys and case studies of Michigan municipalities, the findings suggest that training is the critical link between sexual harassment policies and perceived positive outcomes. In short, even the best policy, absent a commitment to training, is unlikely to have the desired workplace outcomes.T his article assesses the relative importance of sexual harassment policy and sexual harassment training on positive outcomes in public sector organizations. Four questions frame the analysis. Do policies and training increase satisfaction with the implementation of sexual harassment policies, (i.e., the process itself )? Do policies and training increase satisfaction with sexual harassment policies (i.e., are there particular policies with which employees are more satisfied)? Do policies and training increase the reporting of sexual harassment? Are policies and training related to the prevalence of sexual 175 ARTICLES
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