The dictionary describes “respectfulness”
as: “Courteous regard for people’s feelings.”
When people offend, embarrass or humiliate you at work,
it hurts you emotionally and it affects your dignity.
It may affect your productivity and break down relationships
you built up at work. Disrespect leads to a high staff
turn-over.
A respectful
workplace supports and enhances the physical, psychological
and social well being of all employees. In a respectful
workplace, people:
Value each other,
their clients, subordinates and superiors
Communicate
with integrity
Resolve conflict
amicably and respectfully
Report disrespectful behaviour
to management
Harassment
Harassment is abusive,
unwelcome and/or unsolicited attention, comments, sexual
advances, letters, emails, phone calls or visits
or harassing others because of a group to which they belong
or appear to belong. The Labour Laws in South Africa prohibits
harassment in employment and other situations.
Who is responsible
to prevent disrespect?
Everyone has a responsibility to prevent disrespect:
|
Perpetrator
The person whose action offends others. If you think
your behaviour offends someone else, stop the behaviour. |
|
Victim
Tell someone if their behaviour offends you. Ask
them to stop. Give a respectful response and avoid
blaming. If the behaviour continues or is serious,
report the incident to the appropriate person in
the workplace. |
|
Witness
or observer
The person who observes disrespectful behaviour.
You are not innocent. You have a responsibility
to call attention to the disrespectful behaviour.
Offer suggestions for more respectful behaviour. |
|
Person
with Authority
Supervisors and managers should address disrespect
immediately. Ultimately, it is the employer's responsibility
to provide a respectful and harassment-free workplace. |
What can
your employer do?
Your employer is responsible to provide a healthy work
environment. Some ways employers can build a respectful
workplace are:
Training
Provide training on respectful workplaces to all staff
and management
|
Hold
orientations with all new employees and review their
rights, responsibilities and obligations toward
other employees |
Provide
diversity training
|
Provide
conflict resolution training and make sure all management
and supervisors are skilled in handling conflict
|
Policies
& procedures
Review policies & procedures to make sure they encourage
respect
Develop a respectful workplace policy with the involvement
of staff
Support and encourage people who practice respectful behaviour
Build accountability
Hold management and staff responsible for their behaviour
Investigate all complaints of disrespect and harassment
Assess respectful behaviour in performance evaluations
What can
you do?
You can model respect by practicing the following behaviours:
Try to understand the other person's point of view
Accept values and opinions that are different from your
own
Identify your own feelings before you share your concerns
with another person
Do not blame, threaten or name call even if you are angry
or hurt
Report abuse, discrimination or harassment
By Elsabé Manning
