Respect and tolerance, or insults and harassment?
These are very topical issues that all places of work have to deal with regularly, with prevention in mind.
It goes without saying for most people that they should respect others, but harassment occurs every day at many places of work. This has become quite clear, not least due to #MeToo and recent media reports. The extent of the issue indicates that no industry is without problems.
Although each and every individual is personally responsible for not offending others, management and senior management have to create a culture in which this behaviour simply doesn't occur. An environment that doesn't create systematic conflicts or permits victimisation and bullying. An environment that is instead based on openness and respect, where you can be who you are.
Many companies and organisations prevent problems of this kind by working systematically with the social work environment as well. For instance, this may involve asking staff how they feel about coming to work in the mornings. Is the trend taking a downturn? If so, it's time to find out why – before the problem flares up and ends up turning into a culture crisis. And above all, before things go so far that someone ends up being the victim of abusive behaviour. When that happens, it's too late.
Does everyone at your place of work feel they're respected?
Is everyone crystal clear about what behaviour is deemed to be abusive?
If you're not sure about the answers to these questions, there are complete packages on this topic that you can work with in &frankly. Of course, you can also create your own questions on the basis of discussions with your co-workers.
