Sexual harassment affects productivity, employee retention: report

New report available from the Conference Board of Canada

Not only does sexual harassment affect the performance of the complainant and the harasser, it also causes a ripple effect that influences the productivity of co-workers and supervisors in obvious and more hidden ways.

That's the finding of the Conference Board of Canada report entitled Sexual Harassment Is Still a Management Issue, the first part of a gender diversity tool kit that addresses key issues identified by women executives as hallmarks of a woman-friendly organization.

"Harassment affects morale, absenteeism and job performance.
Those involved don't even need to label the behaviour as harassment for it to affect productivity within the organization," said Dr. Barbara Orser, the author of the report and research affiliate with the Board's Centre of Excellence for Women's Advancement.

The report outlines how sexual harassment affects employee commitment and retention, reveals some common mistakes organizations make when dealing with the problem, explores myths and misperceptions about sexual harassment, and provides best practices for preventing and resolving incidents which could hurt the organization's bottom line.

The full report can be purchased from the Conference Board of Canada.

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