Harassment Prevention Supports Emotional Safety in Business and at Work

A few years ago, I heard a presenter speak about the concept of emotional safety in the context of what is needed to create emotional safety for customers. At the time (and today), the relevance was seamless for me when describing what “internal customers” a.k.a. what employees need to create emotional safety:

• Trust
• Confidentiality
• Reliable, Objective Data
• Healthy Discussion / Conflict
• Mutual Respect.

Over the last few months, safety has been a theme in the Harassment Prevention training sessions that I deliver.

For a construction company with over 100 employees in the room, I made the connection during that training with the previous OSHA presentation.  “The compliance obligations for preventing harassment and preventing accidents carry equal weight,” I observed to the group. “If violated, both harassment and accidents cause employee harm. And if not addressed by the organization, harassment and accidents cost the employer financially and reputationally.”

For a religious organization receiving Harassment Prevention training, emotional safety was especially important, as it supported the mission of the organization and protected members and practitioners alike.

When investigating a harassment complaint, HR practitioners do their level best to preserve confidentiality and prevent retaliation against complainants. The ultimate goal is to ensure that the harassment stops and is not repeated – to restore emotional safety for employees.

How do your harassment prevention and remediation efforts create emotional safety in business and at work?