Discrimination at work hurts the company’s reputation and productivity, as well as the morale of its employees. Because of this, companies in many fields are paying for anti-discrimination training to make their workplaces more welcoming, respectful, and legal.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) says that in 2021, there were almost 61,000 complaints of discrimination at work. This shows how important it is to make training and awareness better. But what do workers really get out of these programs besides following the rules? Let’s take a look at it.
Why is it essential for all employees to learn how to avoid discrimination?
Anti-discrimination training doesn’t just teach workers about the rules and the law; it also gives them real-world tools to find, stop, and deal with unfair treatment. These programs help workers understand how bias affects them and why it’s important to make workplaces fair for everyone, regardless of their race, gender, age, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.
Some of the best benefits for workers are:
- Knowing what the law says they can and can’t do.
- Learning how to recognise both explicit and subtle forms of discrimination.
- Getting to know and care about coworkers who come from different backgrounds.
- Knowing how to report or deal with discrimination safely.
What do workers learn from training on how to stop discrimination?
1. Knowing your rights and the law at work
Both federal and state laws protect people from discrimination. These are the Civil Rights Act, the ADA, and the Equal Pay Act. This information gives them the power to find violations and know that everyone has the right to a safe and fair job.
2. Recognising Unconscious Bias
Training shows how unconscious bias affects hiring, promotions, decision-making, and everyday interactions. People become more aware of how they act and learn how to be less biased.
3. Skills for Talking to Others and Solving Problems
Not understanding something is a common cause of discrimination. Interactive modules help employees learn how to handle disagreements, talk to each other with respect, and work together as a team to lower stress at work.
4. Respect for differences
When employees learn to value other people’s points of view and cultural differences, teams become more creative and innovative.
How does teaching workers how to deal with harassment help stop discrimination?
Programs that fight discrimination focus on fairness and equality. Training for employees on how to deal with bullying, harassment, and retaliation helps these programs. Workers who get both kinds of training have everything they need to handle bad behaviour at work.
Some good things about combining are:
- Recognising harassment that is verbal, non-verbal, or digital.
- Knowing how to tell someone about a problem and keep it to yourself.
- Making a culture that won’t put up with harassment or discrimination.
Things Employees Should Know from Anti-Discrimination Training
Know Your Rights: Workers learn more about the rules of the company and the laws against discrimination.
Recognise Discrimination: Training helps employees notice small signs of bias or harassment.
Encourage Respect: Employees learn how to make their relationships with coworkers more friendly and respectful.
Take Action: Employees feel more in control when they know how to report, step in, or ask for help.
Support Diversity: Accepting differences makes it easier to work together and come up with new ideas.
What can companies do to help their workers after they finish training?
Training is only the first step. Companies need to make sure that people keep learning by how they act as leaders and at work. When companies do the best things for their workers, they:
- Give people regular classes to help them remember things.
- Encourage people to talk openly about diversity and inclusion.
- Make it easy to report.
- Give rewards to people who are polite and punish people who aren’t.
- Get leaders to be dedicated to being open to everyone.
- By doing this, businesses teach their employees how to be fair and respectful at work.
Training to stop discrimination can make the workplace safer.
Companies need training providers they can trust who can teach them how to stop harassment and discrimination for good. Shift E-Learning and other sites have courses that are fun and useful, so you can learn things that will stick with you. By putting money into programs like these, businesses teach their workers how to spot, stop, and deal with discrimination at work.
SHIFT HR Compliance Training can help your business make the workplace safer and more respectful by giving employees complete training on how to avoid discrimination and harassment. By using interesting content and expert-led design, these programs help workers remember things and be responsible for what they do.
Questions and Answers about Training to Stop Discrimination
1. What is training that stops discrimination?
People who work learn about the rules, laws, and behaviours at work that stop bias, discrimination, and unfair treatment through anti-discrimination training.
2. How often should employees receive training?
Experts say that training should happen once a year, and that there should be refresher sessions whenever the rules or laws change at work.
3. Does the training on anti-discrimination include things like harassment?
Yes, many programs include training on harassment so that workers can fully understand what they are doing wrong at work.
4. Who needs to go to training to stop mistreating people?
Everyone in the company, from the newest hires to the top managers, should take part to make sure everyone is on the same page.
5. What good is web-based training?
Shift E-Learning and other online platforms make training easy to access, fun, and trackable, which keeps employees interested and compliant.