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Discrimination and harassment are hurtful and harmful. They result in decreased confidence, and cause fear, anger and competency problems.
There are also indirect effects—low morale, decreased productivity and lower profitability. Clearly understanding and confidently confronting discrimination and harassment will improve your effectiveness as a manager, an employee and as a coworker.
1. Direct Communication
Whenever possible, and when an employee feels comfortable doing so, he/she should directly confront the offender and clearly state that they feel uncomfortable with the offender's behavior and they want the behavior to stop.
2. Ask For Help Holding Offenders Accountable
If an employee does not feel safe confronting the offender directly, then he/she should immediately contact a supervisor, manager, or Human Resources professional. If an employee tries to stop the harassment by directly confronting the offender and it continues to occur, or if assistance is needed to stop the offending behavior, the employee should immediately seek help.
Kathy
Kathy had been looking forward to working at The Family Service Center. However, over the past three months, she has become frustrated with how her coworkers treat her. She is not sure if she wants to continue to work here after all. Kathy is one of a few women of color in the center. She is afraid that there are limited opportunities for women to get promoted after passing the licensing examination. She also thinks women are treated as “less than” the men because the men think the women appear to be less capable.
She does not like it when some of the men call the women “Girls,” or “Codependents” to mention just a few of the terms they use. Additionally, whenever the men need something that they probably think is "woman's work" they ask one of the females to do it. Some of these tasks include things like cleaning up the break room, fixing coffee, picking up the work area, and taking notes at meetings.
She has spoken to some of the other women about her feelings, but they have told her, “You just can't get so sensitive! They're really harmless and they probably don't mean anything by it.”
Frank and Henry use these terms and make these kinds of requests most frequently. They have the most seniority in the agency. Kathy thinks they should know better and she thinks they could be more sensitive to how these terms and requests affect most professional women.
Kathy tells her Clinical Supervisor about the circumstances. She is afraid of retaliation if her Clinical Supervisor does anything and she asks him to keep her concerns confidential.
Is Kathy being harassed? If so, what type of harassment is going on here?
As a Clinical Supervisor, what do you do?
Carmen & The Intern Team
Carmen is one of the few female interns in the county hospital outpatient clinic. Yesterday, two of her male coworkers bumped up against her at the same time from opposing sides, squeezing her between them. They laughed as they jumped back, and made crude comments about Carmen's “soft spots.” Several other interns saw what happened and joined in the laughter.
Carmen looked like she was about to say something, but then she seemed to have changed her mind and walked toward the break room. She sat by herself for a few minutes before going back to work.
You are Carmen's Clinical Supervisor and you saw what happened. You didn't think it was funny and you didn't join in the laughter. You think that Carmen was probably upset by the circumstances.
What do you think happened here?
What should Carmen do about it?
What, as Carmen's Clinical Supervisor, should you do about it?
Mario
Mario works as an Intern in the agency. He is one of a few Hispanic workers in the work group. Some of his colleagues tease him often about being on “Mexican Time.” They jokingly rib him as being the first one to go on break and the last one to return to work. Additionally, they tease him about being late or slow with his case management responsibilities.
This morning, Mario found a small, straw sombrero inside his cubby box with a note that said, “Siesta Time!” He threw it on the floor and walked out.
You are Mario’s Clinical Supervisor and you see Kathy and Frank when they go up to Mario. Kathy says, “Hey Mario, how was your siesta?” Frank says, “Bet you had more luck keepin’ the rays out of your eyes with that new sombrero, didn't you!”
Is Mario being harassed? If so, what type of harassment is it?
As Mario's Clinical Supervisor, what would you do?
Just Tellin' It Like It Is!
Tom is the new lead Intern and Watson and Jared, who are close friends, are two new interns in his group. Most conversations that occur while people are working on administrative tasks are easily overheard.
Watson and Jared frequently discuss their frustrations about being at the Family Service Center and they don’t seem to care about who might be listening. They think all the promotions after licensure are going to the White males and it really bothers them a great deal. Announcements from the most recent examination are expected any day and there are four staff openings at the Family Service Center. Eight interns are anxiously awaiting their test results.
Frequently they can be overheard voicing their frustrations. This afternoon, Tom heard Watson say to Jared, “In no time at all, we’ll be the only people of color around here.” Jared replied, “Thank you, bru-tha! Here, it will soon be like an ocean of white faces with just us two brown flecks floating in the middle before you know it!”
Tom doesn't need this kind of “White male bashing,” and he is really frustrated. He told Watson and Jared to quit complaining, but they laughed and said, “Oh, get a life.”
Tom tells you, his Clinical Supervisor, about what happened. He wants you to do something about it soon.
Is Tom being harassed? If so, what type of harassment is going on here?
As a Clinical Supervisor being told this by one of your employees, what will you do?
Karen & Eric
Karen had been dating Eric for several months. Both work at the 24-hour Crisis Call Center. They knew that had a match, and they had their wedding date set. Recently, Karen began to have reservations about the relationship and she decided to break off her engagement to Eric. This was a very difficult thing for her to do because they work together and they frequently see each other during the workday, in team meetings and in their weekly supervision group. They also see one another in the parking lot, and around town. Karen told Eric it was over, and she told Eric that she was hopeful that he would be able to “let her go."
Eric didn’t feel it was best for him or for Karen. He thought that maybe he hadn't been romantic enough toward Karen or shown her enough special attention. He started bringing her flowers and gifts at work and sending her cards and letters at home. He bought her sentimental gifts, and put them on her desk or left them on her car.
He also thought that maybe he hadn't told her how much she meant to him as frequently as he could have so he started sending several long, handwritten letters to her each week and leaving her voice mails and emails at work and at home.
More than anything, Karen never wanted to see Eric again. And she realized that this was probably not a possibility. She tried avoiding places where she was afraid she might run into Eric and she even started eating her lunch in her car.
Karen asked her coworkers to try and keep Eric away from her. Because she was afraid of seeing him after work, she started working overtime until she was confident he had already gone home. Sometimes she would stay at work for several hours after everyone else on her shift had gone home. She even began parking her car at a friend's house and rode to work with her so that Eric couldn't wait for her by her car in the parking lot.
Is Karen being harassed? If so, what kind of harassment is going on?
Karen has reported the situation to you. As her Clinical Supervisor, what would you do?
Sandy & Greg
Sandy has worked with the same intern group at the Adolescent Residential Treatment Center for about five months now. There is always a heavy caseload and they all work hard as a team. About one month ago, the intern group went to a concert one evening after work. Sandy was not invited, but all the other females were asked to go to the concert. Sandy found out later that Greg had organized the group activity. The concert trip was the fourth time all her coworkers had gone out together and not invited her to come along.
Greg had been very friendly and outgoing when Sandy first joined the team. After her first few weeks on the team, he changed and started responding to her with "the cold shoulder" and seemed to avoid her most of the time. She couldn't figure out why he was treating her this way after he had been so friendly in the beginning.
Sandy heard that next weekend the group was going to have a barbecue. Once again, she had not been invited. Sandy considered Donna a trustworthy friend and she asked her why she wasn't being invited to the group’s after-work events. Donna said, “Hello? Sandy, you know you couldn’t handle it. You’re not the type for hanging out with Greg and the other guys. Anyway, that’s what Greg tells everyone. You know what they say, ‘What goes around comes around.’”
You overheard the conversation between Sandy and Donna. Is Sandy being harassed or discriminated against?
If so, as their Clinical Supervisor, what will you do?
Kathy
Is Kathy being harassed?
Kathy seems to believe that she is being harassed in several ways. She is uncomfortable with the treatment she is receiving and she has talked about it with both her peers and her supervisor. She also seems to be fearful of retaliation for confronting what she believes is negative treatment.
If so, what type of harassment is going on here?
It appears that Kathy believes she is experiencing discrimination based on her gender and her color based on the following observations. It is not a supervisor's responsibility to determine whether the negative treatment is unlawful or not, it is the supervisor's responsibility to address the treatment and promptly take corrective action.
Kathy has talked with her female peers and with her supervisor about how she is feeling in response to the negative treatment she is receiving from Frank and Henry. She feels like females are treated unequally or as if they are somehow perceived as "less than" males.
Kathy seems to be feeling devalued, minimized, and stereotyped by the men at work. From her perspective, the men seem to show little respect or value toward the women and they seem to overlook or have blind spots around the female team members' abilities to perform supervisory roles.
She seems to be frustrated with the role stereotypes made by the men through their expectations that the females should clean the break room, fix coffee, carry out the general housekeeping chores for the team and take notes during team meetings. When she confided in her female coworkers she was shut down and told to be less sensitive and not take it so personally. She also seems fearful of being passed over for future promotions because of her gender and possibly because of her color.
When she did finally confide in her supervisor, she was fearful of retaliation for bringing up these issues. This could have been even more difficult for her because her supervisor is also a male in the agency.
As a Clinical Supervisor, what do you do?
First, the clinical supervisor should be supportive of Kathy and avoid making any personal judgments about whether or not she has been discriminated against or harassed by the alleged offenders. Next, he should let her know that the company takes all allegations of discrimination and harassment seriously and he should complete an agency Incident Report Form.
The supervisor should also ask Kathy several questions, including "Tell me specifically what has happened. Who was involved?" "Were there any witnesses?" Then the supervisor should inform Kathy that this information will be kept confidential and it will only be disclosed on a "need to know basis." He should also inform her that Human Resources or an agency-authorized representative will be discussing the matter with the people who have a business need to know and they may also talk with other people who may have knowledge of the issues involved.
The conversation should be documented on the agency Incident Report in specific detail; outlining all the facts, circumstances, person(s) involved, witnesses and specific allegations, and then submitted to Human Resources or the Agency Director. The supervisor should also inform Kathy that she will be protected from retaliation for sharing this information and that she should contact the supervisor immediately if she experiences any retaliation. It is important to also tell Kathy that she must not retaliate against any of the alleged offenders either.
The supervisor should maintain all regular business activities that were happening prior to hearing the allegations from Kathy, including both Kathy's responsibilities and those of the alleged offenders. Once an investigation is launched and concluded, specific recommendations will be made for corrective actions if needed.
Carmen & The Intern Team
What do you think happened here?
A policy violation has occurred because of the inappropriate physical contact and the "crude comments" that were made in reference to Carmen's physical characteristics. More information is needed in terms of the physical contact between the two male interns and Carmen. What parts of her body did they come into contact with during the incident? What was the specific language used in their "crude comments?"
Depending on the specific nature of the physical contact and the exact language used during the incident some courts could rule that one incident was severe enough to constitute sexual harassment. In Scott v. Sears, Roebuck & Co. (7th Cir. 1986) a female employee was repeatedly propositioned and winked at by her supervisor, and coworkers slapped her buttocks and commented that she must moan and groan during sex. The court examined the evidence and did not consider the environment sufficiently hostile. In Andrews v. City of Philadelphia (3d Cir. 1990), the court held that derogatory language directed at women and pornographic pictures of women serve as evidence of a hostile working environment.
And in Ellison v. Brady (1990), the Supreme Court said,
We therefore prefer to analyze harassment from the victim’s perspective. A complete understanding of the victim’s view requires, among other things, an analysis of the different perspective of men and women. Conduct that many men consider unobjectionable may offend many women. See, Lipsett v. University of Puerto Rico, 864 F.2d 881, 898 (1st Cir.1988) (‘A male supervisor might believe, for example, that it is legitimate for him to tell a female subordinate that she has a ‘great figure’ or ‘nice legs.’ The female subordinate, however, may find such comments offensive'); Yates, 819 F.2d at 637, n. 2 ('men and women are vulnerable in different ways and offended by different behavior'). See also Ehrenreich, Pluralist Myths and Powerless Men: The Ideology of Reasonableness in Sexual Harassment Law, 99 Yale L.J. 1177, 1207-1208 (1990) (men tend to view some forms of sexual harassment as 'harmless social interactions to which only overly-sensitive women would object'); Abrams, Gender Discrimination and the Transformation of Workplace Norms, 42 Vand.L.Rev. 1183, 1203 (1989) ('the characteristically male view depicts sexual harassment as comparatively harmless amusement').
What should Carmen do about it?
Carmen could confront the male interns, separately or together, and let them know that she is offended by their behavior and comments toward her and that she wants them to refrain from treating her in this manner in the future. She should also speak with her supervisor about the incident and let him or her know what happened, how she was impacted and how she would like to see it addressed. If Carmen isn't comfortable speaking to her supervisor, since the supervisor was present when it occurred and failed to intervene, then she should contact someone else in a supervisory position and report the incident so that a fact-finding investigation could be launched.
What, as Carmen's Clinical Supervisor, should you do about it?
Ideally, the supervisor should have intervened "in the moment." The behavior should have been identified as inappropriate and offensive and a clear message should have been given to both male interns that it was not acceptable to behave in that way or make those types of comments in the workplace.
Because the behavior occurred publicly and other interns were present to observe it, it should have been immediately addressed publicly to avoid collusion. The supervisor could have said something like, "Your behavior toward Carmen was offensive and inappropriate. You may not realize it, but your actions were also a violation of our Zero Tolerance policy against harassment and discrimination in the workplace. Please meet me in my office in about 30 minutes so we can discuss this further." Next, the supervisor could have approached Carmen and taken her to a private location to discuss and debrief the incident.
The supervisor should contact Human Resources or an appropriate agency official for further guidance on how to proceed. The supervisor should also document what was observed, the intervention that was made, the interview with Carmen and the interview(s) with the two male interns on an agency Incident Report Form.
Mario
Is Mario being harassed? If so, what type of harassment is it?
Mario is being harassed and it appears that it is occurring primarily because of his race and/or ethnicity. These behaviors and comments clearly constitute a "Zero Tolerance" policy violation based on discriminatory harassment targeting an individual's race and/or ethnicity.
More information is needed to determine if the behaviors and comments rise to the threshold of unlawful discriminatory harassment. We know it is upsetting to Mario but we don't know if it is severe or pervasive enough to substantially interfere with his ability to perform essential job functions.
As Mario's Clinical Supervisor, what would you do?
Because you have observed the incident, you should confront it in the moment. You might say something like, "Kathy, Frank, your comments toward Mario were really inappropriate and I would appreciate it if you would refrain from teasing and joking with him about things of a racial or ethnic nature. You may not realize it, but your comments could be interpreted as harassment."
Next, you would want to speak with Mario privately and learn more about the nature and scope of the treatment he has been receiving. After you have interviewed Mario, it would be important to contact Human Resources or another agency official and find out what next steps should be carried out to address the problem.
An agency Incident Report Form should also be completed documenting the details of what you observed, what you did to intervene and the content of your interview with Mario. You would probably also have a follow-up meeting with Kathy and Frank and the details of this discussion should also be documented on the Incident Report form.
If it is discovered that similar incidents have occurred with Mario, it may be necessary to conduct a further investigation to determine if others have experienced similar harassment. It may a good idea to hold an agency training session and discuss the Zero Tolerance Policy, the impact of harassment and discrimination and the business reasons for the policy. The training should also cover the options victims have for reporting incidents and how complaints are handled including the investigation and disciplinary actions that could occur.
Just Tellin' It Like It Is!
Is Tom being harassed? If so, what type of harassment is going on here?
If Tom is a White male then he could be experiencing Watson and Jared's comments as racial in nature and directed toward him because of color. If Tom is not a White male, he may still experience Watson and Jared's comments as racial or based on color but not directed toward him personally. Tom could still experience these comments as hostile and it could be argued that over time, the persistent nature of the complaining could contribute to creating a hostile work environment.
This type of behavior would clearly be a Zero Tolerance policy violation. We don't have enough data to determine if the nature of the complaining is severe or pervasive enough to substantially interfere with anyone's ability to do their job.
A parallel issue to be addressed is the shared belief held by both Watson and Jared that people of color are being discriminated against in terms of promotion opportunities. Although their approach to expressing their feelings is inappropriate and possibly discriminatory in nature, their actions do not discount or minimize their own feelings about being victims of color or race discrimination.
As a Clinical Supervisor being told this by one of your employees, what will you do?
First, you should continue the conversation with Tom and gather more information. Tell him that the company takes all allegations of discrimination and harassment very seriously. Be sure to inform him of both the internal and external complaint processes available to him.
Use an agency Incident Report Form to document your conversation. Ask Tom if there were any witnesses to the incident and inform him that you will be reporting the incident to the agency director and the human resources department.
Next, it is important to assure Tom that the incident will be fully investigated. He should be informed that once the fact-finding investigation is concluded, if it is determined that a policy violation has occurred corrective action will be taken.
Third, after your conversation with Tom, you would probably initiate a conversation with Watson and Jared. You would want to learn from them what happened from their point of view. It would also be appropriate to question them about their beliefs and feelings around people of color being discriminated against for promotional opportunities within the agency.
Finally, if you discovered that they did have these feelings, another Incident Report should be completed to document their allegations of discrimination and harassment based on color. They should be made aware that the agency takes all allegations of harassment and discrimination seriously. They should also be reminded of their rights regarding both the internal and external complaint processes available to them. These allegations should also be reported to the agency director and to the human resources department for further investigation.
Karen & Eric
Is Karen being harassed? If so, what kind of harassment is going on?
Karen is clearly being sexually harassed to the point of a policy violation. It appears that the intensity and severity of Eric's behavior may also be substantially interfering with Karen's ability to perform her essential job functions so it could also be construed as unlawful sex discrimination or sexual harassment.
Karen has reported the situation to you. As her Clinical Supervisor, what would you do?
First, you should gather more information. Tell her that the company takes all allegations of discrimination and harassment very seriously. Be sure to inform Karen of both the internal and external complaint processes available to her.
Use an agency Incident Report Form to document your conversation. Ask Karen if there were any witnesses to the incidents and inform her that you will be reporting the incident to the agency director and the human resources department.
Next, it is important to assure Karen that the incidents will be fully investigated. She should be informed that once the fact-finding investigation is concluded, if it is determined that a policy violation has occurred corrective action will be taken.
There are at least three possible outcomes in this case study. First, Eric could have a prior history of obsessing over relationships and they could have developed into stalking patterns like we see in this incident. If these circumstances are allowed to continue to develop without an appropriate intervention, the possibility exists that Eric's behavior could escalate further to the point of assault or abduction.
The second possibility is that Eric's behavior has been appropriate and he has been filled with hope about restoring the engagement. Karen may have been unable to clearly express her desire to end the relationship with Eric in no uncertain terms. She may be extremely uncomfortable with conflict and may be so fearful of hurting Eric that she just hasn't been able to tell him her true feelings and desire to end their romantic involvement. Her indirect messages and her lack of explanations may be fueling his hope for reconciliation.
The third possibility is that both Eric and Karen are emotionally immature and neither one has the ability to deal with the end of their engagement. Karen may not be able to clearly express her feelings and change of heart to Eric and Eric may not be able to accept the rejection, let go and move forward. It is escalating for both because Eric is trying harder and harder to win Karen back and Karen is avoiding him more and more in response to his relentless pursuit.
Remember, the supervisor's role is not to determine why the behaviors are occurring. It is to ensure that the complaint is investigated and to implement any suggested corrective actions that may be recommended following the investigation's conclusion. The primary objective is to create and sustain a workplace environment free from discrimination and harassment so that everyone can do his or her best work.
Sandy & Greg
You overheard the conversation between Sandy and Donna. Is Sandy being harassed or discriminated against?
It appears from the case study that the behaviors bothering Sandy the most involve activities outside the workplace including going to concerts and a barbeque. Sandy is feeling rejected and excluded by her peers because she is not being invited to after-work social events like everyone else. This is discriminatory treatment because she is being treated differently. Donna has explained that Greg is the person who is leading the charge to leave her out because she isn't "the type for hanging out with Greg and the other guys."
We don't know from the available data whether discriminatory treatment or harassment is occurring at work, during work hours. All we know is that Greg has changed from being "very friendly and outgoing" to "responding to her with 'the cold shoulder' and seem[s] to avoid her most of the time." If his "cold shoulder" and avoidance behaviors are interfering with either his or Sandy's work competence then it is probably a policy violation and should be addressed.
Additionally, we don't know if an event happened at work that caused Greg to shift in his treatment toward Sandy. There is a possibility that Greg could have made advances toward Sandy and she could have rejected him. His exclusionary treatment could be retaliation for her rejection. Another possibility is that Sandy made advances toward Greg and he rejected her. His "cold shoulder" and "avoidance" could be attempts on his part to avoid having to face her advances again.
If so, as their Clinical Supervisor, what will you do?
Because you have overheard the conversation, you are aware of Sandy's concern about her peer relationships at work. You could invite her to talk with you and together you could explore the issue in more depth.
Depending on what you learned in the conversation, you may need to document the incident on an agency Incident Report Form and report the incident to the Agency Director and the Human Resources Department.