Has it happened to you yet?  Has someone come to you with a complaint about being harassed, or discriminated against?

Oh sure, I know your company culture is one of full respect and equality.  But that doesn’t mean that someone, at some time, won’t accidentally, or with intent, say or do something that’s disrespectful, or designed to make someone feel less than.

The point is, we as leaders, have to do everything in our power to make sure everyone knows the rules of the road.  What’s OK and what isn’t.  What’s the appropriate way to communicate and treat one another.

And don’t fool yourself, it’s as important from a culture viewpoint – after all, when your team isn’t taking up mental space with concerns about how they’re being treated, they have that much more space and time to do their best work – as it is from a legal viewpoint.  Not to be crass, but discrimination or harassment cases can be exceptionally expensive (even if you win), and it’s almost always a lose lose from a PR perspective.

But, there are things you can do, and should know, if you find yourself in a situation where a team member is lodging a complaint.

So, before a complaint even comes in, it’s critical that you have your ducks in a row.  You should have a formal anti-harassment / anti-discrimination policy in your handbook.  Frankly, even if you don’t have a handbook, you should have a formal written policy.  Different states have some slightly different requirements, but generally the policy has to state that any form of harassment or discrimination won’t be tolerated and you should lay out the complaint process.

Do you require that the complaint be in writing.  Or, does it need to be made to a specific person.  Now again, many states have very specific guidelines around this, so check first.  For instance, in California, your anti-harassment policy has to include

• a list of all the protected categories (this includes gender protections);
• it has to clearly state that the policy applies to employees as well as anyone else your employee may come into contact with – people like vendors, consultants or clients
• it has to clearly outline the procedure for lodging a complaint
• allow for the employee to file their complaint with someone other than their immediate supervisor, for instance the HR rep, or another supervisor etc.

There’s more to the list, but you get the idea.  The state has carefully laid out guardrails around what has to be included in your policy.  And don’t forget to get every employee’s signed acknowledgement, and be sure to put that in their file.