California is one of the most progressive states in the United States. A recent poll showed that the most hated state was California. Why is that? Is it because of our beautiful beaches? The movie and television industry that keeps the entire world entertained?
Or is it because of our ongoing dedication to bringing our state, and in time, the rest of the country, into the twenty-first century?
To get people back to work during the pandemic, the state of California was at the forefront of Covid safety measures. The film industry changed nearly overnight in order to meet the changing safety requirements.
In California, we have gender-neutral bathrooms and teachers can say the word “gay” in school. We can’t smoke right outside a building, but we can buy legal marijuana anywhere we want, anytime, day or night. No wonder people are sitting in Missouri just stewing!
Now, it’s time to turn our attention to sexual harassment. With our strong initiative, a seemingly endless pool of creative talent, and the desire to make a change, there is nothing we can’t solve.
In this article, we’re going to take a look at the benefits of implementing sexual harassment training in California to give you the information you need to know.
Increased Productivity
If you’ve been fortunate enough to never be sexually harassed at work, let me paint a picture of what it’s like.
Every second of your workday, when you should be focused completely on your task, a part of your brain is focusing on something else. You’ve got a little voice in the back of your mind or a feeling deep in your gut. It’s telling you: look out, there could be danger ahead. It’s oppressive, living with this fear.
Even when you go home for the night, you’re not free. You wonder if your harasser is going to contact you on your off hours. You imagine him firing you for refusing his advances. You think about your kids and the vacation you promised them this summer and you think about how much they’re going to resent you – not your boss, not your HR representative, but you – if you have to cancel.
“Sorry, guys, not this year. Money is too tight.”
With all that going on, how can a woman give her best?
If she’s succeeding now, think of what she would be able to accomplish without that added extra burden.
Sexual harassment training helps to level the playing field to give your entire workforce the opportunity to do well. Click here for more information about the definition of sexual harassment. Many companies that have successfully completed training have found their productivity increase by more than fifty percent. It’s clear that any leader looking to maximize their profits should first look to the needs of their staff.
Lower Turnover
In the last two years, the status of the workforce has changed. Where companies frequently had their pick of any number of qualified candidates, those days are over.
Now, there are more positions to be filled than people able to fill them. Some of the biggest companies are having to restrict their operations because they are unable to find the staff necessary to keep things running on time.
In this marketplace, losing an employee could mean months of trying to find a suitable replacement. In the meantime, you’ll be working understaffed, trying to put out the same amount of product as before. Your team will be overworked. You’re likely to watch a domino effect as your staff becomes distraught and quits.
Once you find a qualified candidate to replace the person you lost, you will more than likely spend months training their replacement. This costs thousands in labor hours, not to mention the money lost in mistakes caused by your new trainee that would not have happened if you still had your experienced person in the position.
While the time and expense of training might seem like a loss to you, remember what you’re trying to prevent. Click this link: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/prod2.t01.htm for government statistics on labor productivity to find out more.
Increased Diversity
In her 2004 HBO special, Rosie O’Donnell talked through her heart attack for the audience. She did it, she said, so that women could know the symptoms of a heart attack and be better prepared if they had one.
“You get pale, paler than you’ve ever been before,” Rosie said. “And black women, I’m sorry, I don’t know what happens to you. I’ve looked it up and there’s no information anywhere. I don’t know what to tell you.”
Rosie hit upon something important: different people bring different skills and biases in with them to their jobs. White male doctors are unlikely to pay attention to a black woman’s symptoms. Prevent these gaps in knowledge by creating a safe work environment for everyone.