• Employers can provide bystander intervention training to help prevent violence and sexual harassment at work.

Bystander intervention training is a violence prevention strategy. As the name implies, bystander intervention training encourages people who witness potentially harassing situations to step in to diffuse them. Bystander intervention training is being used in organizations to prevent violence and sexual assault.

The concept involves at least four strategies:

1. Help bystanders recognize potentially problematic behaviors, thereby creating awareness;
2. Create a sense of collective responsibility by motivating bystanders to step in and take action when anyone observes problematic behaviors;
3. Empower bystanders by building their skills and giving people the confidence necessary to intervene as appropriate; and
4. Provide bystanders with resources to call upon and that support intervention.

Normalizing

Bystander training can put an end to “normalizing.” Normalizing occurs when a person dismisses or overlooks bad behavior for so long that it begins to feel acceptable or expected. Typically, this occurs because a person believes the behavior is unavoidable or easier to ignore than to address.

There is no environment where people should continue to dismiss acts of harassment because “this is just the way it is.” Sexual harassment is pervasive in some workplaces, but that doesn’t mean it’s acceptable or something to tolerate.

Some businesses have intimidating authority figures or a culture that promotes inappropriate behavior. If the culture of harassment is uncomfortable for individuals, those individuals should take steps to shift the culture to a healthier direction.

Employees should use whatever influence the person has with peers, or through the workers own position, to set the expectation that no one deserves to be harassed. Whether a new hire or 20-year veteran, an employee should make it clear that sexism, unwanted sexual advances, or sexually inappropriate behaviors will NOT be tolerated.