Imagine you are the branch manager of a local bank in your community. Your assistant manager, Tom, has worked at the bank for over five years and has been a valuable employee. Recently, there have been several complaints from female co-workers regarding Tom's constant jokes about women. When confronted about the issue in the past, Tom claimed the comments were all in fun and no harm was intended. However, the women in the department find many of his jokes tasteless and feel they have no place in the workplace. Although you personally feel Tom is just being himself, you must now take a more serious approach to address this issue. Before you speak with Tom about the most recent complaints against him, you would like some guidance from your Human Resources Department (HR).
For this assignment, you will interview someone you know from the HR department within your current or former organization about the ethical dilemma in the above scenario. You want to explain to your peer that you are working on an assignment for your graduate program and would appreciate some insight regarding the most appropriate actions a manager should take based on the company's Ethics and Business Code of Conduct policies. Since some of the female employees have expressed feelings of being uncomfortable around Tom because of his sexist comments, you are also interested in learning about any potential legal implications relative to sexual harassment and the fair treatment for all employees. After your interview, ask yourself the following questions:
What did you learn from your interview?
What recommendations did your interviewee make regarding this situation?
How will you apply the information you received regarding potential legal implications?
Do you feel you are now prepared to address Tom's behavior? Why or why not?