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| Taking
care of staff |
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A policy on
sexual harassment and a programme for enhancing
emotional health are two staff well-being initiatives
that IE Singapore recently launched. Find out more
about them in
this story.
When does a friendly jibe or comment from a colleague
cross the line into the realm of sexual harassment?
Apart from the dreaded physical aspects, what other
forms can such harassment assume?
International Enterprise (IE) Singapore recently
lifted the covers on sexual harassment issues at
the workplace when it introduced an official policy
on the matter.
The Workplace Sexual Harassment Policy was officially
launched on
1 March this year and a talk on the subject was
conducted on 15 March.
“Our aim is to create a healthy work environment
for staff and we have achieved much in providing
a wide variety of health-engaging and social recreational
activities,” said Ms Tay Bee Sin, Assistant
Director of Human Resource Group at IE Singapore.
“To complement our ongoing efforts to promote
staff well-being, we have officially introduced
a policy on workplace sexual harassment to guide
us in achieving a harassment-free workplace for
all staff.”
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| IE Singapore
has introduced a policy to protect staff
from sexual harassment. |
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Ms Tay pointed out that the policy is intended to
protect both potential victims of sexual harassment
as well as persons who have been wrongfully accused
of the crime. The policy also takes account of the
fact that the perpetrators and victims of such harassment
can either be male or female.
During the lunchtime talk, Dr Margaret S. Gremli
of Magellan Management Resources shed light on the
subject that had many
grey areas.
“It’s not a topic that is high on the
popularity list for many companies in Singapore.
I have been turned away a number of times because
many companies here believe it simply does not happen
at their workplaces,” she said.
She went on to explain that sexual harassment at
the workplace can take many forms. These include
situations where a supervisor creates a hostile
working environment for a subordinate who rejects
his/her advances or ties a promotion to a sexual
favour. Sending emails with written or visual content
that a colleague may find offensive is also considered
sexual harassment.
IE Singapore’s policy on sexual harassment
at the workplace defines the terms and conditions
when such an incident is said to have taken place.
It also clearly outlines the procedures involved
when handling such harassment complaints.
In yet another effort to promote staff well-being
at the workplace, IE Singapore’s Workplace
Health Promotion Committee officially launched the
Workplace Emotional Health Programme (WEHP) during
a health talk in February this year.
“This forms one of our four-pronged approaches
aimed at addressing staffs’ total well-being.
The other three areas are healthy eating, physical
and social health. The WEHP will also be extended
to our colleagues based overseas,” said Ms
Tay.
IE Singapore engaged the Corporate Consulting Services
(CCS) arm of the Institute of Mental Health to design
a programme to help staff improve their emotional
resilience and achieve an effective work-life balance.
According to Ms Tay, the programme aims to address
daily emotional health issues that staff may face,
and offers a strong and reliable support facility
to help staff cope with emotional stress.
Administered by CCS, the programme comprises a package
that includes awareness training and periodic communication
sessions for staff, a 24-hour employee assistance
hotline and follow-up services, three one-to-one
short-term counselling sessions for work-related
and personal issues, and referrals to other appropriate
resources. |
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| By
IE Singapore |
