When I speak to a group of employees about responding to bullying and harassment in the workplace, I try to make sure they are aware of the following guidelines:
- Read your employee handbook thoroughly
- Talk to HR about processes and procedures – about issues such as performance evaluation, harassment reporting, etc
- Thorough review and understanding of union’s rules, regulations and processes
- Learn about your state’s process for evaluating human rights violations
- Be mindful of what topics should be discussed at the workplace
- Follow union and HR processes if there is harassment
- Document everything about incidents, witnesses, HR response, etc. Keep in mind that most eyewitnesses will not come forward
- Do not tell anyone if you are considering taking legal action
- Be careful of emails, text messages, etc sent in connection with the situation
- Be prepared for a long battle – everything seems to take a lot of time