Podcast: Sexual Harassment 2.0, What Now?
With #MeToo now a household name, sexual harassment is undoubtedly one of the most significant issues affecting employers today. That's why it was front and center at the annual conference of Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in Chicago, which featured a presentation by Philadelphia employment attorney Jonathan Segal, partner and managing principal of the Duane Morris Institute.
This podcast features a wide-ranging conversation with Segal at the conference about sexual harassment and workplace relationships, including:
- The role HR can play in investigations;
- Why love contracts are not a good idea;
- Gray areas involving what's socially acceptable; and
- Unintended consequences.
Segal noted that while organizations now understand that power starts at the top, some of them stop at the top and do not go further. "If you're a $10-an-hour person who works in a hotel and the $12-an-hour employee comes onto you, he has Harvey Weinstein-like power [over that person]," says Segal.
However, he asserted that HR by and large is doing a good job. "You don't read about the hundreds of cases where the problems have gone away because HR took appropriate corrective action," says Segal. "But no one calls the New York Times and says, 'HR did a great job.' And HR often does do a great job."
Additional Resources
Podcast: Sexual Harassment Run Amok - A View From the EEOC
Podcast: Superstar Sexual Harassment and What to Do About It
Investigate a Claim of Sexual Harassment
Sexual Harassment - Supervisor Training
