Key Takeaways
- Harassment can take place over distance, and 38% of remote workers have experienced it.
- Routine training allows employees to know what to look for and how to report problems.
- Remote-specific training builds more respectful and stronger teams.
- With real-world references and easy reporting tools, training is more effective.
- How Do Businesses Begin Harassment Training for Remote Workers?
- Here are some easy steps to start with:
- Choose a training program designed for remote teams.
- Employ web-based, mobile-friendly modules so workers can learn on the go.
- Give examples from real life that resemble your firm’s software (like Slack or Zoom).
- Train managers so that they can handle reports effectively.
- Offer easy and safe methods of reporting any issues.
- One such trusted supplier who offers this kind of training is Shiftelt. Its training is simple, direct, and geared towards the hybrid and remote workforces of today’s world.
As more and more employees work from home, it’s critical that employees are safe and treated with respect, wherever they are. Harassment can occur in virtual settings such as email, instant messaging, and videoconferencing.
Indeed, 38% of remote workers report that they have been harassed while working remotely, and 24% believe that the issue has grown since the move to remote work (Shiftelt). Because of these reasons, we must rethink the way in which harassment training for employees is conducted for remote employees.
This blog discusses why training is required and how it results in a respectful virtual workplace.
Why Do Remote Employees Need Harassment Training?
Employee harassment training informs individuals what not to do at work. It informs them what harassment is, how to report it, and how to steer clear of it. For virtual teams, this training must be altered to include things like:
- Impolite emails or chat messages
- Offensive jokes or images shared online
- Inappropriate remarks on video calls
Remote work transforms human behavior. There are fewer witnesses, and it is more challenging to observe poor behavior. That’s why training is even more crucial.
How Does Telecommuting Raise the Chances of Harassment?
Telework is beneficial in many respects, but it creates new issues in the realm of harassment.
This is why it is harder to catch harassment in remote teams:
Greater privacy– Individuals can express or do something that is improper in private video calls or private chats.
Less control– Managers may not know when things go awry online.
Blurred boundaries– Commuting between work and home life may cause inappropriate or personal remarks.
Fewer reports– Employees may not know how to report their harassment or feel uncomfortable reporting it over the phone.
What Should Remote Employee Harassment Training Involve?
To be effective, remote harassment training must go beyond the typical topics. This is what it must cover:
Key Issues
- What is online harassment (e.g., insulting words, exclusion, insulting messages)?
- Real-life examples that can be applied to remote teams (e.g., someone having an inappropriate Zoom background)
- How to call out if you see someone being treated unfairly
- Role-playing or quizzes to allow people to know how to act
- Safe reporting devices, such as anonymous forms
- Training must also teach about how behaviour on the web, even joking, can be over the line.
What are the advantages of harassment training for employees?
When you train your remote employees properly, both sides win, the company and its workers.
- Advantages to Employers
- Fewer legal issues or grievances
- Lower employee turnover
- Improved team spirit and concentration
Benefits for Employees:
- A safer and more respectful workplace
- Clear guidelines regarding what’s on and what’s off
- Increased confidence in the company’s management
According to surveys, 71% of employees are treated with more respect when their company invests in harassment training.
Why SHIFT’s Harassment Training Succeeds with Remote Teams
Shiftelt provides contemporary training equipment meant to adapt to the current work-from-home environment. Below are how they differ:
- Interactive modules based on actual remote scenarios
- Transparent reporting mechanisms to make staff feel secure
- Available on mobile and desktop
Simple to identify who has accomplished training. Their employee anti-harassment training is developed with lawyers and HR professionals, so your business remains compliant and your employees remain educated.
Creating a Respectful Remote Culture with the Right Training
It requires more than policy to establish a healthy workplace culture; it requires education and action. With the right kind of harassment training for employees, your organization can make work-from-home employees as comfortable and respected as office employees. Shiftelt can assist you with that.
Their professionally developed training solutions provide all you need to establish a respectful, harassment-free workplace, whether your people work remotely or not. Make the first step today. Visit SHIFT HR Compliance Training and look at what training they have to offer, and bring safety and respect to your remote workplace.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why do employees in remote workplaces need harassment training?
Offensive messages, improper calls, and e-rejection are some of the unique challenges remote employees face. Preventing and responding to misconduct is simpler when employees are trained in digital etiquette.
2. Is it possible for harassment to occur in a virtual office?
Of course, it is possible. No one is immune to harassment simply because they work over the internet. In fact, almost 38% of remote employees have experienced harassment in the form of emails, chats, and video calls.
3. Why is it such a challenge to notice remote harassment?
The lack of privacy, few witnesses, and the blurred lines of home and work make it easier to perpetrate and harder to report offenses of online harassment.
4. How can businesses prepare remote team employees for harassment training?
To train remote employees, businesses have to choose online, adaptable courses that focus on cases, equip managers, and establish private channels for reporting.
5. Why is SHIFT HR’s training particularly useful for remote team members?
SHIFT’s training is useful because it is tailored for remote employees and legally and HR-approved. It is situational and accessible through mobile which makes it ideal for hybrid and remote workforces.
