Research Statement Problem
Discuss About The Sexual Misconduct At Workplace Management.
Serious allegation has been made against one of the senior managers of Dubois Industries and the company has paid a huge amount of compensation to the victim. There are rumors going around the company that the sexual harassment case like this is nothing new, and it has been taking place for a long period of time. Also, these kinds of sexual misconducts are covered up by the company. One of the Board members has resigned showing her concern over the incidents, stating that the board has knowledge of such incidents and nothing has been done to cure and stop it on time. The case and the company’s name for all wrong purposes have been in the news in the past few weeks. The board of the company now wants to conduct a research on the culture of sexual harassments in the company and to develop a policy framework to stop it. Dubois Company has assigned this task to their management consultancy firm Young Consultancy. It is the objective of the Young Consultancy to find the nature and cause of the existence of a culture of sexual harassment in Dubois Company and to develop a policy framework including recommendations, to prevent such kind of misconduct (Catalyst, 2018).
In the assigned project, Young Consultancy proposes to conduct a research on the working culture and work staff of the Dubois Industries. Also, the Consultancy proposes to examine factors like nature and causes of sexual misconduct at Dubois Industries. The Consultancy will employ a quantitative approach to gather data and information with the objective of identifying the reasons which cause sexual harassments and the development of a policy to prevent it.
The two main questions which will be analyzed and answered by the Young Consultancy for the Dubois Industries are: Firstly, why and how an incident of sexual harassment occurred or happened at Dubois Industries. Economics, how it can be prevented or how to put an end to a culture and atmosphere of sexual harassment or misconduct at the Dubois Industries (ABS, 2017).
The objectives of the research are the identification of the nature and causes for the existence of sexual harassments or misconduct of Dubois Industries and development of a policy to prevent sexual harassment at the workplace in Dubois Industries at any level
Through this research, an analysis will be done on the root cause problem of the existence of sexual harassment or misconduct in the Dubois Industries. In this research a study will also be conducted on the various aspects of human behavior and how do they interact with each other each other at the workplace. On the basis of this, the nature and causes of sexual harassments can be identified and measures can be developed to stop it. This research paper synthesizes the strategies identified in literature in addressing harassment or misconduct of a sexual nature in the workplace in Dubois Industries (Holland, Rabelo, Gustafson, Seabrook, & Cortina, 2016).
Research Questions
It has been found out that in the year 2014-2015, around 19% complaints made to the Australian Human Rights Commission were filed under the Sex Discrimination Act, and out of which 77% complaints were about sexual harassment at the workplace. Since sexual harassment charges have been made against many people in the Dubois Industries, it is very important to examine the nature of sexual harassment, which means that at the workplace, how is the sexual harassment manifests. In other words, who was the victim, who was the accused or culprit and the feature of workplaces where it happened. In the research, it has been found out that woman are the major victims of sexual harassment, but evidence has emerged which suggests that men are also becoming victims of sexual harassment at the workplace (Jenkins, 2017). Sexual harassments can be in physical or non-physical form. Like in the case of Dubois Industries, it has been found out that many workers were sexually harassed by their subordinates or seniors, by touching inappropriately, grabbing, unwelcoming kissing, attempted rape or assault, passing lewd comment or remarks, inappropriate leering or staring, sexually explicit MMS or messages, pressure for sex or sexual acts etc.
Sexual harassment at the workplace can happen for a number of reasons, but there is no specific reason attached to it. It can happen with any employee or person, at any point of time and anywhere. Sexual harassments are illegal in nature and there are serious punishments for this assigned by the law and the company (McDonald, Charlesworth, & Graham, 2015). It can be in the form of suspension, termination, written apology, community service, criminal fine, imprisonment etc.
In case of men, the sexual harassment is not widely studied in general, as it is done against women. It is due to the fact, that many men are reluctant to report any kind of sexual abuse at the workplace, due to fear of losing the job or social status or unmanly behavior. Anyone, including men, can be a victim at the workplace. Same-sex harassment is as common as opposite-sex harassment. Also, there can be incidents when an employee is not aware or unable to identify that he/she is sexually abused, and such incidents go unreported (Irvine, 2018). Many times, respondents are unable to understand or perceive non-physical harassment behaviors, like, suggestive comments or intrusive questions, unwelcoming hugging or cornering etc.
Sexual harassment is done at times by superiors to disempowered, intimidate or discourage their subordinates or juniors. In male dominating industry, like military and politics, usually, men perform such kind of inappropriate behavior in order to safeguard their occupational territory. Such kind of acts mostly goes unreported or unchecked, as it involves a senior official of the company, as it happens in Dubois Industries. In a work culture, which ignores such incidents and behaviors, employees work in fear of being fired, if they report about the sexual harassments. At senior management, there is the incidence of sexual harassments or abuse, which goes unrecognized or unreported due to misuse of power and control. In such situations, the victims remain silent and share the incidents with friends and family. Since the research conducted by the Australian Human Rights Commission in 2003, there have not been any major changes in such incidence (Connley, 2017).
Research Objectives
Harassment can be done by male or female and the victim can be male as well as a female employee at the workplace. It is required in the workplace, to change their tolerance level, where employees can speak up about sexual harassment, rather just being a witnessed or victim. Such incidents at Dubois Industries must be regarded as a serious health and safety hazard and proper measures should be taken. There is the absence of any kind of helpline for the reporting of such incidents in the company. The company has denied any kind of accusation since the beginning, but it is the responsibility of the employer and the HR department to stop such kind of violence and predatory behavior before it commences. Also, in the company, there is no risk identification approach where any focus is done on sexism and gender inequality, which are mostly the cause of sexual harassments. The company should adopt an educational training and program on sexual harassment and issues like misuse of power, sexism, and misogyny etc. The victims of sexual harassment have a significant impact on their life, both personally and professionally (Alcorn, 2017).
In a survey, it was found out that out of five employees, only one employee complained about the sexual harassment at the workplace. Most of the complaints made was internal, to their employer or manager, and no external complaints were made to legal service or human rights commission. Most times, a complaint made to the external agency is due to the fact, that employers or HR department is unable to resolve the case or take any actions. In most of the cases, Dubois Industries employers and board committee refused to document any such incident (Lucke, 2016).
To measure the extent of sexual harassment in the general population of Australia in the year 2003, National Telephone Survey was conducted. Based on it 2008 National telephone Survey was done. Based on these surveys and the Dubois Industries survey, it has been found out that most of the time, it is the witnessed, who report the sexual harassment incident to the concerned department. Work colleagues play a crucial role in supporting the victim at the workplace. There is no proper avenue for reporting the sexual harassment at the Dubois Industries. Due TO increase in the number of sexual harassment cases in the Dubois Industries, there is a creation of a negative culture and environment in the company, which can have a detrimental effect. The company has adopted a culture where it is tolerance towards the sexual harassment of the employees and this is not good for the company’s operations. The company management must take preventive measures and training so that every employee should be involved in the knowledge of the nature and types of sexual harassment at the workplace. The managers must train their employees about the sexual harassment and what kind of legal implications are involved in it. In the case of Dubois Industries, it has to be found out that what kind of actions and preventive measure are taken by the management in case of sexual harassment (Charlesworth, 2017)
Expected Outcomes
The research includes interviewing employees who are the victims of any kind of sexual misconduct or harassment at the Dubois Industries or have witnessed any kind of sexual harassment at the workplace. Also, employers, including the Board of Directors will be interviewed about the work culture and policy of the company against such incidents and steps taken by them to date to prevent it. Other than this, secondary data will be used to gather data and information regarding the sexual harassments, including the statistics of sexual harassments at the workplace, the policies of the Government etc. Though the primary method is relevant in this case, there are chances that sometimes, due to a personal vendetta, an employee or a senior can give wrong feedback to a person. It can lead to the false image of that person or he/she can be seen as a harasser by the company and employees. In order to prevent such scenarios, it is better to use secondary data as well to support this research and developing a framework for the company (Cates & Machin, 2012).
The interview will include those employees who experience any kind of sexual assaults, sexual harassment, gender discrimination or sexual advancement by any other employee or senior. In-depth qualitative data will be used so that a realist, constructional and phenomenologist approach can be used for the issue. Also looking at the social trends and policy implications, primarily quantitative analysis can be done. Interviews will be conducted so that one to one conversation can be done and feedback can be generated. Based on these feedbacks, secondary data can be used, such as Government policy, various acts etc. The reason for collecting data in such triangulate method is to evaluate and analyze the question and research topic as deep as possible and it can give a clear image of the entire scenario at the Dubois Industries. This will help in backing up of one set of findings from another method of data collection. For example, a questionnaire can be given to a certain set of people for the collection of statistical data related to sexual harassment and then this can be supported by a more in-depth interview of the people who were harassed or accused someone of trying to attempt such acts (Morral & Gore, 2014).
In case of interviews, the sample will be identified, a series of questions will be set, it can be tapped or noted down, transcribes, thematically the results will be identified and finding will be related with other research methods. In case of the questionnaire, identification of research questions, formulation of appropriate questions, questions should not be leading and confusing, it should be coded for further analysis, and statistically analyze it
A critical review of the Literature
While conducting the research (interview and questionnaire) permission from the people will be obtained before involving them. Simple questions will be formed and asked and it will not be done to cause any kind of harm to the employees at personal and professional level. Due considerations will be placed on the subjectivity vs objectivity in the research method. Proper approval will be taken from the Dubois Industries ethical review committee before commencing an interview and analysis of the work culture and employees so that no rules are broken (Mujtaba, 2013).
The research question will be analyzed by using the quantitative and qualitative data and information. The analysis will include a questionnaire, interviews, personal observations and secondary analysis. Based on the analysis, corrective measures and framework will be developed. This will help in reaching the root cause problem of the Dubois Industries. The research questions, identification of the nature and causes of the existence of sexual harassment in the Dubois Industries and how to develop measures to prevent such harassments should be developed (Charlesworth, 2017).
The timetable will list the key milestones for the research and when they will be achieved. You may include additional information in your appendices such as budget, equipment and staffing requirement for the research
The project will start in the first week of the next month and will take approximately take a month to present the proposal to the Management. It will include stages of piloting, main research, screening interviews, questionnaire, main study, etc. The objectives of the research are the identification of the nature and causes for the existence of sexual harassments or misconduct at Dubois Industries and development of a policy to prevent sexual harassment at the workplace in Dubois Industries at any level (Salman, Abdullah, & Saleem, 2016).
A team of 10-15 members will be required for this project, as it involves many stages of analysis, like the formation of questions for personal interviews, the formation of the questionnaire, personal observation of the workplace and its employees and senior management personnel, finding a solution to the problem and analysis, etc. On a regular basis, the team members will report to the team head, who will report to the CE
Young Consultancy should proceed with submitting the tender to Dubois Industries to undertake the research. The framework offers a research-informed set of organization-wide measures which are remedial and preventive in nature. In this study, deep analysis of the entire organization will be conducted which will highlight the important areas for further research, where strong focus can be made on developing corrective actions for reducing or eliminating sexual harassments from the workplace at the Dubois Industries. This research will be based on the data and information gathered by primary study, which will be backed up by the secondary study (Lucke, 2016). With the help of qualitative and quantitative research, Young Consultancy can design a robust framework for the Dubois Industries. For this, two teams with 5 members each should be formed for conducting research on the Dubois Industries work for culture and staff. Young Consultancy can offer a quantitative or a qualitative approach to the Dubois Industries or a mix of both approaches. Also, it will be required that no interference is caused by the employers or any board member of the Dubois Industries, while conducting the research.
References
Psychology. (2017). Experience of sexual harassment. Retrieved from www.abs.gov.au: https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Lookup/by%20Subject/4906.0~2016~Main%20Features~Experience%20of%20Sexual%20Harassment~29
Alcorn, G. (2017, October 17). ‘Perverse outcomes’: How Australia is failing sexual harassment victims . Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/18/kate-jenkins-on-how-australia-is-failing-sexual-harassment-victims
Catalyst. (2018, January 23). Sex Discrimination and Sexual Harassment. Retrieved from https://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/sex-discrimination-and-sexual-harassment-0
Cates, S., & Machin, L. (2012, February). The State of Sexual Harassment in America: What is the Status of Sexual Harassment in the US Workplace Today? The Journal of Global Business Management, 8(1), 133-137. Retrieved from https://www.jgbm.org/page/18%20Steven%20Cates.pdf
Charlesworth, S. (2017, November 29). Sexual harassment in the Australian workplace: How to spot it and what to do. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-29/don-burke-sexual-harssment-tip-of-the-iceberg-women-workplace/9205092
Connley, C. (2017, November 20). 3 psychologists explain why men harass women in the workplace. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/20/3-psychologists-explain-why-men-harass-women-in-the-workplace.html
Holland, K., Rabelo, V., Gustafson, A., Seabrook, R., & Cortina, L. (2016). Sexual harassment against men: Examining the roles of feminist activism, sexuality, and organizational context. 17(1), pp. 17-29. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-17472-001
Irvine, J. (2018, March 05). ‘Shocking’ levels of sexual harassment at work, study reveals. Retrieved from https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/shocking-levels-of-sexual-harassment-at-work-study-reveals-20180305-p4z2wn.html
Jenkins, K. (2017, December 14). Sexual Harassment – Safer Workplaces . Retrieved from https://www.humanrights.gov.au/news/speeches/sexual-harassment-safer-workplaces
Lucke, J. (2016, January 6). We need to do more about sexual harassment in the workplace . Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/we-need-to-do-more-about-sexual-harassment-in-the-workplace-52817
McDonald, P., Charlesworth, S., & Graham, T. (2015). Developing a framework of effective prevention and response strategies in workplace sexual harassment. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources management, 53(1), 41-58. Retrieved from https://researchbank.rmit.edu.au/view/rmit:31096
Morral, A., & Gore, K. (2014). Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment in the U.S. Military. Retrieved from https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR870z2-1.html
Mujtaba, S. (2013, December 12). Sexual harassment in workplace: Causes and remedies . Retrieved from https://ummid.com/news/2013/December/12.12.2013/workplace-harassment.html
Salman, M., Abdullah, F., & Saleem, A. (2016). Sexual Harassment at Workplace and its Impact on Employee Turnover Intentions. Business & Economic Review, 8(1), 87-102. Retrieved from https://www.imsciences.edu.pk/files/journals/vol82/Paper%206-Sexual%20Harassment%20at%20Workplace.pdf
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