‘Training the next generation HR practitioners’: Reflecting on HRM student experiences of sexual harassment training

Despite prohibitive legislation and organizational policies and training, high rates of sexual harassment persist in the hospitality industry, a situation that is concerning to organizations and researchers alike. As management educators, we embedded a sexual harassment lecture within the context of a human resource management degree, with the aim of developing the capacity of the future human resource practitioner workforce to address sexual harassment. The reflective journals of these students, collected over a three-year period, reveal that while participants found the session improved their understanding of sexual harassment myths and remedies, many still questioned their ability to act within the context of wider organizational dynamics. Our analysis leads us to conclude that sexual harassment training sessions are a valuable and necessary starting point for developing intolerance. However, if we are truly committed to eradicating sexual harassment, then a much broader and integrated approach is required that includes redressing the limitations of the current legal systems, broadening the scope of education within the wider community and developing intolerant organizational climates.

Sexual Harassment Training Focused Solely on Protecting Organizations From Lawsuits Won't Change a Toxic Culture for Women to an Inclusive One

The location where workplace sexual harassment occurs points to the importance of workplace structures and practices for the precipitation of sexual harassment. In fact, some of the current theoretical explanations of sexual harassment focus primarily on organizational features that may facilitate sexual harassment, such as hierarchies and organizational cultures. Organizational literature suggests that in recent decades there has been a trend toward increased use of organizational practices that might empower workers, make organizations more inclusive, and constructively change organizational cultures through interventions. Assumptions about men and women contained in hegemonic gender beliefs can become embedded in organizational structures, authority lines, job classifications, institutional rules, and employee interactions. This paper explores these notions through a case study of an organizational intervention and a content analysis of the literature.

A U.S. Survey of Sexual Harassment in Ophthalmology Training Using a Novel Standardized Scale

Objective This study aimed to assess the frequency and severity of sexual harassment toward ophthalmology trainees. Design Present study is an anonymous retrospective online survey. Participants U.S. ophthalmology residents and fellows participated in this study. Methods Sexual harassment comments directed toward University of Iowa ophthalmology trainees and faculty members were compiled. Statements were ranked by severity to develop the Iowa Verbal Sexual Harassment Scale. A brief, anonymous online survey incorporating the scale was sent to all United States ophthalmology residency program directors to distribute among trainees. Participants rated the prevalence, severity, and frequency of verbal and physical sexual harassment during training. Main Outcome Measures Response to the survey questions on the prevalence, severity, and frequency of reporting of verbal and physical sexual harassment in ophthalmology training. Results Among 112 respondents (59 men and 53 women), 72 (64.3%) experienced sexual harassment in the workplace from patients (86.8% of women vs. 44.1% of men; p < 0.0001, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.48–2.74). Trainees rarely experienced harassment by colleagues (10.7%) or supervisors (8.9%). Women experienced more severe and frequent sexual harassment compared with men, with 54.7% women and 30.5% men experiencing sexual harassment weekly (p = 0.013, 95% CI: 1.29–5.71). Unwanted touching was the most common physical harassment type. The trainees' threshold for reporting sexual harassment was higher than their worst actual experience (p< 0.0001, F(2,282) = 67.59). Few trainees formally reported verbal (6.3%) or physical sexual harassment (1.8%). Trainees most commonly responded to harassment by redirecting the harasser (67.9%). Only 33.9% of trainees rated their institution's sexual harassment training as helpful preparation for addressing harassment. Conclusion Most ophthalmology trainees experienced sexual harassment with almost all harassment coming from patients. Female trainees reported substantially greater severity and frequency of sexual harassment. There remains an unmet need for targeted response training in ophthalmology training programs.