The challenge:
Diversity in the workforce can result in cultural, social and gender differences, misunderstandings and conflicts.
The solution:
Understanding how to prevent or stop conflict such as harassment, bullying and discrimination.
Would you recognize harassment, bullying and discrimination?
- Harassment: unwanted physical or verbal behaviour that is known or ought to be known to offend or humiliate a person or group.
- Example: practical jokes that result in awkwardness or embarrassment.
- Bullying: hostility toward another person that is deliberate, repeated and sufficiently severe as to harm the targeted person’s health, dignity, safety or ability to work.
- Example: gossiping or spreading rumors that target a particular person.
- Discrimination: an action or decision that results in differential treatment toward a person or group for reasons such as gender, race or age.
- Example: refusing to work with someone because of his/her gender or racial background.
- Sexual harassment: a form of harassment related to sex or gender and can include abuse of authority when an owner, employer, supervisor or employee in higher authority uses his/her authority to obtain sexual favours as a condition of employment or advancement.
- Example: Repeated requests for dates with a person even though that person has repeatedly refused.
5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO ENCOURAGE A RESPECTFUL WORKPLACE:
- Recognize that by law in all provinces and territories in Canada it is both an employer and employee’s responsibility to prevent harassment, bullying and discrimination.
- Think before you speak or act. When in doubt, leave it out.
- If you witness harassment, bullying or discrimination, report it to your supervisor.
- You can speak privately to the target to offer support.
- You can speak to the harasser privately and explain how the behaviour comes across.
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OUR NEXT INSTALLMENT: Understanding how changing expectations about the roles of men and women can contribute to harassment.
Previous installment: How respect, inclusion and diversity can create the team that everyone wants to be a part of.
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Resources:
- Canadian Centre for Diversity & Inclusion. Understanding Hidden Bias. 2014. Webinar.
- Construction Owner’s Association of Alberta. Respect in the Workplace Program. 2011.
- www.chrc-ccdp.gc.ca/eng/content/what-discrimination. Accessed 05 January 2017.
- www.chrc-ccdp.gc.ca/eng/content/what-harassment. Accessed 20 February 2017.
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– JOIN THE CONVERSATION –
What would it mean on a worksite to treat workers from different backgrounds the way they want to be treated?
This project has been funded by Status of Women Canada.
Respectful and Inclusive Workplaces
