Expert Insights: Reporting harassment is easier than ever, but that shouldn’t be cause for alarm
I considered it a major technological breakthrough the first time I scanned a QR code with my phone in the grocery store to get the sale price on an item I was purchasing. And my husband was impressed with my savvy the first time we got into a sporting event with just a code on my phone rather than paper tickets.
While those uses of smartphone technology might not seem advanced to you, you might be shocked to learn it is just as simple to report workplace harassment.
The “Know Your Rights: Employment Discrimination is Illegal” poster released in 2023 by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) includes a QR code that goes directly to a website with instructions on how to report a charge of discrimination.
The poster, which replaced the “Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law” poster, also explains employee rights in plain language and might open the eyes of employees that the harassing behavior they are witnessing or experiencing is indeed unlawful discrimination. The poster uses plain language to present information about discrimination and:
- Lists harassment as a prohibited form of discrimination.
- Clarifies that discrimination based on pregnancy and related conditions, sexual orientation, or gender identity are all forms of sex discrimination.
If your company’s response to employee claims of sexual harassment in the past has been to pressure victims to deal with it internally or to simply ignore it and hope it goes away, that QR code might be cause for alarm.
Previously, employees may have been uncertain about where and how to report harassment. They may have believed their complaint would be ignored, or feared for their jobs if they went to their supervisor or HR department. The QR code on the new poster, however, provides a convenient avenue for reporting harassment without going through internal channels.
As people encounter QR codes more frequently, from grocery stores to sporting events and beyond, they will feel more comfortable using them. That may increase the number of people reporting illegal harassment to the EEOC.
To lower the chances of your employees scanning the QR code on the EEOC posting, make it clear that in your organization even a small instance of misconduct will be addressed promptly. Provide multiple channels for reporting harassment internally. If a complaint is brought to the attention of management, it should be investigated and resolved quickly and lawfully, as well as within the guidelines of company policy.