{"id":15438,"date":"2022-09-01T12:00:05","date_gmt":"2022-09-01T19:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.knowledgecity.com\/blog\/?p=15438"},"modified":"2024-04-02T10:29:11","modified_gmt":"2024-04-02T17:29:11","slug":"is-your-sexual-harassment-training-outdated","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.knowledgecity.com\/blog\/is-your-sexual-harassment-training-outdated\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Sexual Harassment Training Outdated?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sexual harassment in the workplace has always been a problem. However, social causes like the #MeToo movement have made it more visible in recent years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the U.S. <\/span>Equal Employment Opportunity Commission<\/span><\/a> (EEOC), 7,609 sexual harassment claims were filed in 2018, the year after the #MeToo movement began. That\u2019s a 13.6% increase from the previous year. What\u2019s more, 78.2% of those charges were filed by women.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Even the shift to at-home work in 2020 and 2021 didn\u2019t curb this behavior. It simply forced it to change shape. Today\u2019s workplace is still plagued by sexual harassment and other forms of discriminatory behavior. This may cause you to ask yourself if your sexual harassment training<\/a>\u00a0is outdated.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is an important question, and shows that you\u2019re on the right track in making sure your employees are cared for. To help answer this question, it is best to first gain a broader perspective by delving into the history of sexual harassment training and how it has evolved.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Focused<\/a>

Sexual harassment could potentially occur in any workplace.<\/p><\/div>\n

The History of Sexual Harassment Training<\/b><\/h2>\n

Sexual harassment can occur to anyone, regardless of gender, but the timeline of women’s experience is more clearly recorded, so this is what we will address here.<\/p>\n

Women have experienced workplace harassment as long as they have been working outside the home. In the 19<\/span>th<\/span> century, most women worked as domestic servants, which exposed them to harassment and assault from their male employers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the 20<\/span>th<\/span> century, women largely moved into sex-segregated industries where they dealt with domineering male managers and supervisors who continued the trend of harassment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When women began entering the mainstream workforce, sexual harassment did not decline. In fact,<\/span> women were advised to quit their jobs<\/span><\/a> if they could not endure the sexual advances and innuendo from bosses and male coworkers.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was not until the 1970s that sexual harassment was recognized as a form of sex discrimination. Sexual harassment training debuted around this time and largely took the form of video content.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This training did little to stem the tide of harassment. It also did not highlight how sexual harassment meshes with our culture, instead presenting it as a simple invasion of personal space that makes the victim feel uncomfortable.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the years, sexual harassment has shifted from bosses being \u201chandsy\u201d to other forms, such as proposing sex acts in exchange for professional advancement, having denigrating conversations, and relegating menial roles to women. Of course, physical contact is still a problem, but workplace harassment today includes a wide range of harmful behaviors.<\/span><\/p>\n

As sexual harassment has evolved, so has the training that addresses it. What began as simple video-based training has expanded and diversified to better combat today\u2019s various work environments.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How Has Sexual Harassment Training Changed in Recent Years?<\/b><\/h2>\n

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, video-based training became the norm in addressing the issue of workplace sexual harassment, as society began to come to terms with its sex discrimination problem.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This training remained relatively unchanged for many years, but technology and social developments like the #MeToo movement prompted it to evolve. This evolution has taken multiple forms.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2020, the world contracted as COVID-19 surged. Many employers reduced their workforces, while others went partially or totally remote. At first thought, this seemed like the good way to reduce sexual harassment in the workplace, but that\u2019s not what happened.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because employees no longer worked in person, harassment became virtual. Rather than in-person comments and behaviors, employees were now forced to deal with unwanted text chats and digital \u201ccat calls\u201d. At least <\/span>one study<\/span><\/a> found that in a survey of over 3,000 US employees, 25% of people experienced an increase in harassment.<\/span><\/p>\n

Unfortunately, professional online platforms like Slack, Asana, and Trello now provide a new avenue for harassment to occur. Other tools of harassment in the digital workplace include phone calls, texts, video calls, and emails.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sexual harassment does not have to include inappropriate physical contact. It can include inappropriate comments and even off-color jokes. It can include inappropriate GIFs sent via digital channels or discriminatory or sexual comments made within any digital medium. Even commenting on a coworker\u2019s appearance during a video meeting can constitute sexual harassment if the comment is inappropriate.<\/span><\/p>\n

In short, any behavior that creates a hostile or uncomfortable work environment can be considered sexual harassment, even if that environment is remote.<\/span><\/p>\n

To address this evolving situation, new forms of training have been created, including online sexual harassment training. This kind of training offers many advantages when compared to simple video-based training.<\/span><\/p>\n

With modern technology, it becomes possible to more effectively accomplish the following:<\/span><\/p>\n