Conference Description:

This webinar is designed to go beyond the basic training to prevent harassment offered through Illumeo and elsewhere. It will talk about some touchy and probably not exactly politically correct ideas in a desire to provide a full understanding of what is happening today and what can be – and should be – prevented in the future.

Why Should You Attend:

The laws have changed – as of January 1, 2020 any employer with five (5) or more employees MUST offer this type of training;. Employees include part-time, interns whether paid or not and some contractors. It also includes people working in other locations, such as at home.

Every day we are learning about more harassing, bullying and abuse behavior on the part of men (mostly men – some women) who have been in positions of power over their (mostly) female victims. Women all over the country – indeed all over the world are yelling “#Metoo” and Not anymore.

This dynamic movement has opened the door for many other women and girls to come forward to share their stories of abuse. Among the ugliest of them (in my opinion) is the young gymnasts – some not even teenagers – abused by their team physician. No more will vulnerable girls, boys and women passively accept demands for sexual favors.
That’s the plus side. The flip side is that any untoward behavior can be interpreted as harassment and abuse behavior. Professional careers can be lost due to these accusations. We need context. We need perspective. Complaints of tacky and inappropriate words should not rise to the level of demands for sexual favors, or actual sexual abuse. We need to look at context. For example, in the sixties and seventies in many parts of the country, there was a tremendous push for sexual freedom. Some people believed that now that the birth control pill was available anything could go. Much of the accusations today come from behaviors that although inappropriate now were considered OK then.

We need to separate mildly offensive behavior from criminal behavior. We also need to be careful that we do not participate in a witch hunt, finding harassment everywhere.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will:

Recognize the different types of harassment and abuse.
Discover the context into which some of these behaviors occurred in the past.
Identify strategies for preventing being accused of harassment or abuse in the future.
Explore new ways of interacting with each other in the workplace – as well as in work-related social activities.
Understand different reactions to teasing
Become aware of how easy it is to create a hostile work environment

Areas Covered in the Webinar:

Understanding the legal/social definitions of sexual harassment, discrimination, abuse and bullying.
Examples of subtle forms of harassment
Knowing the “protected” classes of people and why one should not discriminate
Management’s role in preventing harassment, discrimination, etc.
Appropriate and inappropriate behaviors in the workplace
Understanding that work-related activities such as work-social events are subject to all the laws as if they were in the workplace itself
Recognizing the value and problems as a result of the current #MeToo Movement
Understanding culture and context

Who Will Benefit:

Supervisors, Managers, and Leaders of businesses/government agencies of all kinds
All staff - because it only takes 2 people to cause a problem
Those that are mandated by law to provide the training
Anyone trying to stay current with the "climate"
All industries - non-profits - associations and employees of government agencies