Abuse in the Workplace

Introduction

Companies in this generation are able to highlight the importance of strong human resources and capitals characterized with productive, motivated and highly satisfied employees. In this regard, the company’s human resource management are trying to consider different approach to hire efficient employees and reviews the issues in workforce and workplace abuse.

 

Discussions

Workplace abuse can result to greater loss of human resources; this can be a decisive blow to the organization because of the tremendous expenses on the recruitment of the people. Previous researches also shows that abuse in the workforce will only become effective if the workers were able to bond and connect as a group for great number of time. Despite of not-so-good traits of each person, they were still able to communicate properly and work well particularly in voicing out their concerns because they are getting used to it. Regardless of the various dilemmas concerning workforce abuse, research studies prove that this is an essential factor of an excellent firm as well as gives positive points.  In terms of abuses in the workforce, there are various laws to which a company must comply with even in its local domain but the complication is multiplied in case of business operations where each country in which the business operates has its own laws (McKinnon, 1979). Every component of the company must adhere to the laws pertinent to its field like disclosure laws for finance or accounting, advertising rules for marketing and HR is no exception where it has to deal with a number of employment related laws like provisions for Equal Employment Opportunity in order to avoid workplace abuse. It is a difficult task for the company to comply with the laws and assure that no legal suit is filed on it. It is important to keep the requirements of the relevant legislations in consideration at the time of framing the policies of the company and of its different units. HR professionals must assure that all the employees are provided for as per the legal requirements otherwise the company might have to incur huge costs while dealing with different legal suits. The HR should take precautions when dealing with labor unions/work councils, terminating or reducing the workforce, claims of discrimination, harassment or victimization and privacy matters (McKinnon, 1979).

Basically, there are numerous forms of workplace abuse and this could be a verbal abuse, some type of physical abuse, discrimination, overwork cases, under paid issues, harassment, sexual abuse and others.

Actually, sexual abuse and harassments in workplace occurs among girls in the workplace. Sexual harassment has been recognized by court as a legal cause of action that is based on sexual discrimination since 1976 (Crenshaw, 1992). In time, the law regarding this issue had significantly evolved, placing more legal responsibilities on the employers’ part in terms of sexual harassment acts. Due to this development, the claims filed for sexual harassment has increased in number. For the past years the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), who assesses and resolves claims of sexual harassment and determines if the victim has the right to sue, has handled over a thousand various cases of sexual harassment.

Commonly, the claims are placed against the conduct of non-supervisors such as colleagues, customers or contractors. However, the majority of the cases where characterized by complaints against employees in the upper management level or the complainant’s immediate supervisor. Moreover, most of these alleged claims and complains were eventually found to be valid. As upper levels in management have the authority to direct the subordinates in ways that could affect them, the increasing number of filed claims on supervisors appear to emphasize the fact that sexual harassment is not solely about sex, but on the abuse of power as well.

In the case of filing a complaint for sexual harassment, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is said to be the provision that is violated (Crenshaw, 1992). Under this legislation, discrimination that is based on sex is prohibited. Thus, this federal provision considers the discrimination of an individual based on his terms, compensation, privileges of employment or conditions for the reason of the person’s sex as an unlawful employment act of the employer.

Sexual harassment is indeed a common occurrence in the workplace. While there are legal provisions that answer to sexual harassment cases, several difficulties outside the law can still hinder the attainment of a successful sexual harassment claim. Conventional beliefs and attitudes, stereotyped gender and racial roles, successful claim requirements and gender classification and emotions are among the probable difficulties one can encounter in filing sexual harassment complaints (Crenshaw, 1992). As a decision maker, significant concepts of sexual harassment should be taken into consideration so as to comprehend the case fully as well as to provide appropriate judgments.

Sexual harassment cases are indeed complex. Although a law is already available to guide these cases, several aspects of society and culture seem to outweigh legal provisions. While laws are easily created and passed, the strongly established norms as well as traditional attitudes and beliefs will always be existent as they are harder to disregard. For as long as inevitable problems are present, filing for sexual harassment lawsuits will always be as complicated and difficult.

In accordance to the avoidance of workplace abuse cases, ethics is an important part of every business and unethical practices may tarnish a company’s goodwill in the long run. A code of ethics guides the employees of the company in making their daily decisions (Crenshaw, 1992). Business face conflicts as the society wants it to produce well-paying jobs, but itself is focused on reducing compensation costs and yet enjoy increased productivity; customers ask for low priced goods and services, but companies aim is to maximize profits; society cares for the environment whereas businesses desire to cut the cost associated with regulations. Dealing with these conflicts is what business ethics and its code is all about and these ethical issues are complex within the home country context and global operations proliferates these complexities even more.

Therefore, companies need to realize that these problems are real and can be a result of a number of factors like conflict between management priorities and ethical standards, conflict of employees in having to choose between what is ethical and their livelihood among others. HR plays an important role in implementing ethics in a corporation and is directly involved in ethical issues as they are related to employees and HR is all about employees. HR should try its best to assure that programs are designed and implemented by the management that promote corporate ethics, ethics is incorporated in organizational objectives and leadership programs and remain a priority.

In terms of international operations of a company, maintaining ethical standards is more complex in the face of a complex web of legal, cultural and social actors. HR has to decide on choosing upon serving one stake holder over the other; the best solution in this respect is to involve all the stake holders while making the policies of the company and forming its strategy by taking their input.

 

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are numerous issues that relate in workplace abuse, this includes issues in recruitment, selection and hiring. Aside from this, the workplace and workplace abuse issues including legal and ethical practices should be handled properly by the HR and the company itself.

Fair employment practices in consideration to ethical issue is not just the cost centre of a company but a value able asset whose invaluable contribution is often undermined as it is more than often not measured in quantifiable terms (McKinnon, 1979). But there is no doubt that fair employment practices done by HRs also chooses the competent employees who make the organization operate successfully in different parts of the world and deals with their problems which are a result of cross cultural integration and different economic and legal environments.

 

References:

Crenshaw, Kimberle, Race, Gender, and Sexual Harrasment, 65 S. Cal. L. Rev. 1467, 1474 (1992).

 

McKinnon, Catharine, “Women’s Work,” in Sexual Harassment of Working Women: A Case of Sex Discrimination, pp. 9-23, (1979).

 

 

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