How Effective is Your POSH Policy? Common Gaps That HRs Need to Fix

Workplace safety is a fundamental right of every employee, and it is imperative for company leaders and executives to regularly evaluate their POSH policy effectiveness and embed it into their culture. Organizations should embrace a proactive anti-harassment stance to achieve an inclusive and safe workplace environment and to contribute to the long-term retention and satisfaction of skilled employees.

This article examines some common gaps in POSH compliance that HR needs to address to ensure adequate workplace sexual harassment prevention.

Common Gaps HR Needs to Address for POSH Policy Effectiveness

Despite well-defined POSH guidelines, many organizations struggle with POSH implementation.

Here are some key factors that might pose challenges in POSH implementation for HR: 

• Limited awareness: Many employees, especially new graduates, may not fully be aware of their rights under POSH policies and the sexual harassment redressal process.

• Hesitation to report harassment: Fear of judgment or retaliation may prevent employees from reporting instances of harassment.
  

• Gaps in leadership: Managers and leaders may not be actively involved in the implementation and reinforcement of POSH policies, which may discourage employees from coming forward to report misdemeanors.
  

• Ineffective sexual harassment reporting process: A slow, biased, or unclear harassment redressal and resolution process, as well as inconsistency in the implementation of POSH across different levels, may lead to distrust and a lack of faith in the system.

Best Practices for HR to Achieve POSH Policy Effectiveness

HR has a key role to play in implementing anti-harassment policies and ensuring employee awareness on POSH to ensure overall workplace safety. Well-designed HR policies for workplace safety are not merely compliance checklists but integral to workplace culture. 

Here are some ways HR can strive to strengthen POSH implementation:

1. The onboarding process can include a POSH policy-related questionnaire to understand candidates' awareness of anti-harassment laws and workplace ethics.

2. Organizations may include POSH training for employees across all levels to increase employee awareness on POSH and educate everyone about the reporting process.

3. Organizations may host seminars and conduct interactive workshops beyond traditional training where employees participate in real-life case studies and simulations and contribute with appropriate responses.

4. Bystander training may be included in workplace safety and inclusivity training programs to encourage employees to intervene and shut down harassment and microaggressions as they occur.

5. Organizations should establish procedures that reflect workplace harassment laws in India and protect employees from sexual misconduct. Whistleblowers—employees who draw attention to bias, discrimination, or violation of POSH policies in an organization—should be protected from undue harassment or unfair retaliation after reporting.

6. POSH policies may be reviewed and updated periodically to reflect any new challenges (for instance, POSH compliance for remote work) and legal amendments.

7. Encouraging active involvement from leaders and managers in maintaining workplace safety may ensure workplace sexual harassment prevention is a shared commitment across the board and not just an HR responsibility.

8. Workplace harassment policies should be gender-neutral & inclusive to ensure protection for all.

9. Encouraging anonymous complaints in POSH cases and feedback on workplace safety and inclusivity may engage employees and drive trust in the system.

10. Ensuring well-trained legal consultants or a dedicated internal committee (IC) in POSH for conducting bias-free investigations may inspire employees’ confidence in the reporting process.

11. Leveraging a data-driven approach may be prudent to alleviate workplace harassment and discrimination. HR leaders and managers may invest in analytics and AI-driven tools to identify patterns by leveraging previously documented cases of workplace misconduct, anonymous complaints, harassment incidents, etc., to escalate POSH policy effectiveness.

Conclusion

HR plays a pivotal role in workplace sexual harassment prevention, but gaps in POSH compliance can only be filled through active participation across the board. Companies with thorough and well-defined POSH frameworks may drive higher employee engagement, reduce attrition, and improve brand reputation. Corporate policies for a safe workplace should emphasize three key aspects: a process for reporting incidents, a promise to take immediate action, and protection from the possible negative consequences of raising a voice.