Sexual harassment costs companies millions of dollars in legal fees and settlements. Same-sex sexual harassment can result in even higher settlements and awards.

It is common for companies to provide sexual harassment training. While there may be a universal policy that exists, applications of opposite-sex harassment and same-sex harassment can be entirely different. Additionally, a program that changes behavior must not just raise awareness but also create cognitive and behavioral changes. Too often sexual harassment training fails to address those three domains and proves limited in its impact.

While businesses often train on the topic of sexual harassment, schools have typically provided their employees with limited training on this issue. This is remarkable due to the fact that schools face liability though harassment that is not just employee-to-employee sexual but also student-to-student.

As a result of this session, participants will be able to…

1. Summarize the legal definition of sexual harassment.
2. Examine various, individual definitions of harassment.
3. Compare and contrast opposite-sex sexual harassment with same-sex sexual harassment.
4. Identify the potential differences in management and litigating same-sex sexual harassment.
5. Analyze strategies to intervene in cases of sexual harassment.
6. Create plans for a response by the work community to reduce incidents of sexual harassment.

* Objectives and outcomes can be modified depending on the individual workplace’s need.