Harassment, discrimination and bias of all kinds are non-negotiable at RPG Group

Workplace Harassment — a term familiar to all, experienced by many, battled and voiced by only a few. Although we know what this uncomfortable subject entails, let’s take a hard look at what it technically covers.

WHAT IS WORKPLACE HARASSMENT?

Harassment at work is a form of employment discrimination based on race, colour, religion, sex, origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information, ancestry and sexual orientation.

HARASSMENT IS UNLAWFUL AND IMMORAL, YET WE DON’T REPORT IT – WHY?

We all have the right to a safe workplace, free from harassment. Most employers try their best to promote a healthy workplace where employees can report any harassment issues, through a structured process.

However, a majority of cases of harassment still go unreported.

Someone being harassed may feel their livelihood is in jeopardy if they were to lose their jobs or good shifts as a result of reporting. In other cases, a person may fear further intimidation for reporting such behaviour.

A common issue is that the person being harassed may start believing there is something they could have done or should have done to stop this behaviour by someone. Because of this feeling of self-blame or guilt, a harassed person may not report the violation.

RPG’S STANCE

RPG Group has maintained a zero tolerance policy towards any kind of sexual harassment at the workplace, and has been working to prevent sexual harassment at all its offices, across all locations, factories, project sites.

We are POSH (Prevention of Sexual Harassment) compliant, but is that enough? While compliance is the vital first step, we go beyond to provide our employees with a confidential platform to fearlessly speak up about or report a harassment an employee may have faced without fear of recrimination.

THE TYPE OF HARASSMENT THAT’S MOST COMMON:

Of the various forms of workplace harassment, the one that is most pronounced is sexual harassment against women. Global research shows that 78% of women globally go through some form of sexual harassment and 79% of women wished that they were helped at such times.

Despite great attention being drawn to sexual harassment and its prevention, women employees do not feel adequately helped. While most workplaces are POSH compliant now, there are negligible or no complaints under this provision – an issue that could possibly indicate a more serious situation.

As per IPSOS (a market research and consulting firm) research, when a woman is violated, in most cases she recoils thinking that it is her fault and goes through apprehension and self-doubt. She also goes through the worry about how she will be perceived in case she reports a violation of the sexual kind.

In case she does choose to report, the process is a complex ‘wade through’ with specific individuals involved, where biases set in, and reporting (or correct and factual reporting) of the instance doesn’t happen many times.

On the contrary, if the process was simple and did not involve any scope of biases, more victims would resort to reporting their issue.

THERE IS MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE:

Harassment is no longer restricted to violations and sexual advances towards women, these days. There are many other forms of harassment that take place in the modern day workplace, as well. When most people think of harassment they think of the more overt types of cases that are easy to identify, for instance someone being screamed at or being physically assaulted.

However, harassment can also include:

1. 1. Misgendering someone
2. 2. Humiliation
3. 3. Ageism
4. 4. Blocking a promotion or advancement
5. 5. Discrimination on the basis of gender or disability
6. 6. Setting unrealistic and impossible expectations in an effort to set them up for failure
7. 7. Intimidation
8. 8. Spreading harmful rumours

Who listens to the aggrieved employees in such cases? Where do they go when they are violated?

THE SOLUTION: AN EMPOWERED EMPLOYEE VOICE

Answering questions such as these was crucial for RPG to truly stand by its tenet of ‘Hello Happiness’ that forms the essence of its DNA. Every employee at every location needed to be empowered with a voice against any violation, to ensure they were truly happy.

The solution came in the form of a simple enabler – creating a safe space with no stigma, no chances of familiarity, embarrassment or bias.

A first-of-its kind programme in this direction was rolled out with a simple 24x7 helpline number that is managed and handled by a third-party team of industry-certified experts. This ensures that even a grassroots worker could report any violation through a simple phone call to an external team, without any apprehension of them being singled out or noticed for doing so.

This does not require a smartphone, or the help of a bot or even an official email ID. All they need is to make one phone call; even a missed call would do. For those not wanting to actively speak – an action that many find hard to take up, especially while battling post-harassment trauma – an SMS or a WhatsApp message is all that’s needed to connect and share a violation.

THE REPORTING PROCESS IS SIMPLE AND RUDIMENTARY:

• The aggrieved employee/ associate calls a 24x7 number to report an incident of perceived sexual or any other form of harassment. An un-completed call (missed call) and/or text messages will also prompt a call-back.
• A trained and experienced counsellor will first provide emotional support to the aggrieved employee/ associate. The employee will then be provided with legal information and advice, and will be encouraged to file a formal complaint.
• All POSH-related complaints will be directed to the Internal Committee and any non-POSH related complaints will find their way to a separate committee.

At RPG, the term ‘No Complaints’ does not mean an ideal world. The Group encourages and supports employees at every step of the way, to ensure they make no compromise of any kind when faced with an incident of harassment or violation of their rights.

Every employee is entitled to a safe workplace. RPG takes this idea a step forward, by going beyond mere communication of employee rights, in boldly empowering its people and helping create a safe space that is accessible to everyone, whether they are senior or junior in rank.

The larger goal is to maintain a work environment that is free of any stigma or bias, where employees can freely stand up against any violation and reclaim their rights, should they ever need to do so.