BUS301 Human Resource Management

Imagine you are the HR manager at a company, and a female employee came to you upset because she felt a male coworker was creating a hostile work environment by repeatedly asking her out on dates even after she said “no”. What would you do?

As the responsible Human Resource Manager of the organization, I would ask the female employee for how long has it been happening around with her, and would try to know if she is willing to cite any proof for the accusation. In case she brings a convincing proof with her, I will certainly assure her of the strictest penalty to be imposed on the male co-worker. However, in case of valid proof being cited on part of her, I would assure her that the company has its strong employee well-being policy, whereby the company will conduct a thorough investigation of the complaint launched, and will penalize if anybody deserves punishment. Since the female employee might be scared and intimidated by the sexual harassment she has experienced, I would also assure her that she will remain safe from retaliation on part of the co-worker in the long run, and the company will see to it.

Next, I will call the male employee, and I would first inform him about the accusation of workplace harassment levelled against him. I would communicate to him the important policies of the Department of Labour, USA, which strictly prohibits any form of workplace harassment, and is treated as a condemnable offence. I would inquire if he has recently engaged in any unprofessional, offensive conduct at workplace or not. Next, I would inform him that the management authority of the company will observe his behaviour henceforth, and any deviation from expected behaviour will bring him to penalty. I will inform him that no act of retaliation or unethical action against the co-worker will be tolerated. Next, I would also assure him that the company would conduct a fair and just investigation on behalf of him as well as the accuser.

References

Amos, D. (2014). The legal environment. The Business Environment: Themes and Issues in a Globalizing World, 113.

Neall, A. M., & Tuckey, M. R. (2014). A methodological review of research on the antecedents and consequences of workplace harassment. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 87(2), 225-257.