civility

January 26, 2019

The Bystander Effect

It is time for business to take a wide look at anti-harassment training.  There is evidence to support that training raises awareness of what harassment is and that it is prohibited.  One problem is most employees will not be self-aware enough to acknowledge they may be the harasser.  Helping employees become aware of the level of civility in their workplace and the harm of micro-aggressions may be time well spent. But getting employees to report an incident of harassment is the big job. Creating a safe and respectful workplace may open the path to reporting harassment. Research and popular culture […]
March 26, 2015

Celebrate FMLA Justice

It has been almost two years since the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as unconstitutional. Until that time, certain entitlements of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) were only available to opposite-sex married couples. Same-sex married couples are only eligible for FMLA entitlements if the state where the couple resides allows same- sex marriages. That changed on March 27, 2015. Same-sex married couples will be treated the same under the FMLA as opposite-sex married couples. In the final rule issued February 25, 2015 and effective March 27, 2015, the definition of spouse […]
June 26, 2014

Resist The Rescue!

Some managers, especially those new to the role, believe they need to know everything. They see themselves as the “answer-man” or the go-to-person. This thinking reduces one’s confidence and works against the role of manager, coach or leader. Managing is getting things done through others, using people as resources; not directing each action. Responding to others’ questions with answers feels good. A manager may see herself as a servant-leader, but that is not the case. This person isn’t a leader but a firefighter who is always in reaction mode putting out one fire after another. It may feel good to […]
April 8, 2014

Drawing the line on civility

The NLRB requires most private employers to abide by the National Labor Relations Act. Very basically, Section 7 gives employees the right to organize and to engage in concerted activities for mutual aid, and the right to refrain from any such activities for the most part. Section 8 describes unfair labor practices of employers. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) conducts thousands of unfair labor practice investigations each year. A recent finding ruled it unlawful to require employees to refrain from negativity in the workplace. Hills and Dales General Hospital was struggling in 2005. Departments were not cooperating with each other, […]