Time to change

Some lessons for human resources professionals from the #MeToo movement in India

Beyond the barrage of retrospective sexual harassment allegations against some of the most successful names in the media and entertainment industry are unanswered questions on how India’s #MeToo disclosures can spark a sea change in workplace safety.

Predatory male behaviour is not confined to any sector or strata but a recent poll conducted by social networking site LocalCircles, where the respondents were mainly from urban areas, revealed that nearly 80 per cent such cases at workplaces go unreported. So how can this change? When Business Standard tried to find out from a cross-section of India Inc. the lessons that have been learnt from the episode, most acknowledged that the time has come to walk the talk on women safety and that’s possible only when institutional mechanisms are effective, background checks foolproof and gender disparity removed.

“Discrimination and harassment in any form is unacceptable. In the wake of recent developments, the key takeaway for any organisation is to build a safer and a more inclusive workplace for its employees. It is important to foster an inclusive culture, where each individual is respected, irrespective of their gender, social milieu or position,” says Harshvendra Soin, chief people officer, Tech Mahindra.

Of the three factors Soin underscores, it is the “position” of the harasser vis-à-vis the victim that has traditionally played a part in silencing complaints or any form of resistance in the first place and explains why individuals and organisations have managed to get away despite Vishakha guidelines being in place, say experts. “Yes there is a policy but few follow it because the victims feel that they will be discriminated against; that the sensitivity from the organisation’s standpoint may or may not be there and in most cases the accused is someone influential and higher up in the hierarchy and are considered more indispensable to the company,” according to Sidharth Agarwal, co-founder of Spectrum Talent management, a recruitment and staffing firm.

The problem of the relative difference in profiles gets worse in the regional centres or field offices, believes Ashwajit Singh, managing director of development sector consultancy IPE Global Ltd, because unlike in a corporate office where there could be many power centres, there is one all powerful figure in the smaller centre and if he is the harasser, little is done.

Singh, who sees better awareness of one’s own rights as a remedy, believes that the onus is on companies to make employees more aware of their rights and duties. In his own firm, which has about 1,100 employees with 35 per cent of them being women, a gender audit or a survey in which all employees have to share their views on gender issues is an annual exercise and it acts as a refresher course on the checks and balances in place.

Many others also claim to have put similar arrangements in place. For instance, to sensitise employees and enhance awareness, ITC has set up an e-learning portal on prevention of sexual harassment at the workplace which is accessible to all employees and it is ensured that employees undergo this training.

Some others say such a thing has to be done at the early stages of an employee’s career. “Whenever people join our organisation, especially at the entry level, they have to undergo training sessions where we give them case studies of what is okay and what is not okay at the workplace. We also explain the mechanisms you can use to bring misconduct to the attention of someone who can do something about it. You also have to act seriously on every complaint, so that there is an element of trust built up,” says Richard Lobo, head of human resources and executive vice-president, Infosys Limited.

But can the problem be nipped in the bud if the recruitment process is made more stringent? The opinions are more divided on whether it is achievable, effective or ethical.

For instance, Paresh Pradhan, chief human resources officer, Livpure says it is inappropriate for a company to check social behaviour — both real and virtual — of a candidate. “We need to respect the privacy of individuals and cannot be snooping on people and create an environment of a certain phobia based on a misplaced assumption. We should rather focus on prevention and management of sexually offensive or harassing behaviour,” says Pradhan.

Business coach and author Rajiv Talreja adds that there is always a danger that online profiles and posts can be manipulated. “Look at Alok Nath for instance. He is a metaphor for sanskar and his alleged behaviour is completely contrary to the public image he has,” he says.

Sifting of bad candidates from the good ones thus becomes vital but tough. Background checks are one way out and companies are doing them routinely but there are hurdles. “A complete background check includes address check, past employment checks, education qualifications, psychometric tests; drug testing, social media background check, credit history, criminal and court record checks and reference checks. Due to the nature of such (sexual harassment) cases, the likelihood of getting reported either on court records or HR records tends to be on the lower side,” according to Rahul Belwalkar, chief executive officer, SecUR Credentials, which, as Belwalkar claims, is India’s first and only listed background verification company.

Should the employee be made to disclose his previous involvements and anything contrary, if found, become an automatic ground for his removal? Most HR heads, Business Standard spoke to said even that is going to be partially effective as candidates rarely declare anything. But Singh from IPE Global says a better way could be that all male employees are made to sign a document where they declare that they have understood what are the kinds of behaviour that can be deemed sexual harassment so that in future they do not claim to be unaware as has been the case in some instances.

Ultimately, corporate bosses agree, the discourse needs to move beyond preventive measures and focus on sensitisation and better gender ratios at workplaces. A tall order but a start must be made.