WEBVTT 00:00:01.886 --> 00:00:05.803 Dennis, I'm beginning to wonder how committed you are to this team. 00:00:06.685 --> 00:00:10.925 You called the regulators? Why didn't you come to me first? 00:00:10.950 --> 00:00:15.227 But I just want to make sure that, well, this isn't just some misunderstanding. 00:00:15.252 --> 00:00:18.390 We have an agreement that you'd be in, on time, every morning. 00:00:18.415 --> 00:00:21.996 The sitter backed out at the last minute. I had to find a replacement. 00:00:26.807 --> 00:00:33.050 As managers, supervisors and team leaders, we all know that the success of our organization, 00:00:33.075 --> 00:00:37.785 and our own personal success, hinges on our ability to work together, 00:00:37.810 --> 00:00:40.735 treat each other with respect and be productive. 00:00:41.102 --> 00:00:45.220 And, by now, we should all be aware that it's illegal 00:00:45.245 --> 00:00:50.776 to discriminate against anyone based on things like race, sex, age, 00:00:50.812 --> 00:00:55.757 religion, disability and a number of other protected areas. 00:00:56.194 --> 00:01:02.279 But what we may not know is that many of the same laws, rules, and regulations dealing with 00:01:02.304 --> 00:01:09.193 unethical or unsafe activities in the workplace also specifically prohibit retaliation. 00:01:09.416 --> 00:01:14.204 Retaliation is illegal and we all have a responsibility to make sure 00:01:14.205 --> 00:01:19.151 it doesn't happen in our workplace. Because we are in leadership roles, 00:01:19.176 --> 00:01:24.779 we need to know how to recognize, respond to, and resolve retaliation. 00:01:25.053 --> 00:01:30.084 But, before we can do that, there are a few things that we need to know about it. 00:01:37.501 --> 00:01:46.294 So, what is retaliation? At it's most basic level, retaliation means "to get revenge." 00:01:47.668 --> 00:01:52.379 Under several federal, as well as many state and local employment laws, 00:01:52.404 --> 00:01:56.708 retaliation is defined as any action or activity 00:01:56.733 --> 00:02:02.086 that would either dissuade a reasonable person from engaging in a protected activity; 00:02:02.122 --> 00:02:06.281 or punish them for having engaged in a protected activity. 00:02:06.554 --> 00:02:10.971 Examples of protected activities in the workplace include things like 00:02:10.996 --> 00:02:17.663 simply talking to your manager about something that you think could be illegal, unethical or unsafe. 00:02:18.264 --> 00:02:22.140 It's a protected activity to report or file a complaint... 00:02:22.183 --> 00:02:27.734 Or to refuse to participate in something that is illegal, unethical or unsafe. 00:02:27.811 --> 00:02:32.210 In addition, cooperating with an investigation into a complaint... 00:02:32.225 --> 00:02:36.904 Or being a witness in a court case are also protected activities. 00:02:37.582 --> 00:02:41.284 Now, besides having engaged in a protected activity, 00:02:41.318 --> 00:02:44.387 in order to be considered a target of retaliation, 00:02:44.412 --> 00:02:48.632 you also have to suffer what is known as an adverse action. 00:02:49.033 --> 00:02:53.363 For example, being fired can be considered an adverse action. 00:02:53.688 --> 00:02:58.796 Or being harassed, threatened, or even shunned by your manager or your coworkers 00:02:58.821 --> 00:03:01.711 can also be considered an adverse action. 00:03:01.984 --> 00:03:07.800 So, to put it all together... when an employee has engaged in a protected activity; 00:03:07.825 --> 00:03:12.588 and they suffer an adverse action and there is a causal relationship 00:03:12.648 --> 00:03:16.016 between the protected activity and the adverse action 00:03:16.352 --> 00:03:20.487 that's considered illegal retaliation in the workplace. 00:03:28.348 --> 00:03:34.162 Anyone can commit retaliation against another employee. And anyone can be the target. 00:03:34.244 --> 00:03:40.471 For example, a manager can retaliate by giving an unjustified poor performance review 00:03:40.496 --> 00:03:46.320 to an employee because he reported a violation of organization policy. 00:03:46.469 --> 00:03:53.346 Or a group of coworkers can retaliate by harassing, shunning or ostracizing an employee 00:03:53.371 --> 00:03:58.184 for participating in an investigation into a discrimination complaint. 00:03:58.311 --> 00:04:03.705 Or a manager can retaliate against a fellow manager in an effort to 00:04:03.706 --> 00:04:09.537 intimidate him into not reporting the acceptance of inappropriate gifts from a supplier. 00:04:17.415 --> 00:04:22.303 It's important to understand that retaliation is a big issue in today's workplace. 00:04:22.328 --> 00:04:26.425 It's already the fastest growing type of discrimination reported 00:04:26.450 --> 00:04:29.300 to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. 00:04:29.467 --> 00:04:32.928 Organizations that fail to prevent retaliation 00:04:32.953 --> 00:04:38.575 face the potential for millions of dollars in fees and damages awarded in lawsuits. 00:04:38.915 --> 00:04:44.651 In addition, an organization that develops a reputation for permitting retaliation 00:04:44.676 --> 00:04:48.222 will fail to attract and retain good people. 00:04:48.587 --> 00:04:52.811 And claims of retaliation - even if they prove to be unfounded 00:04:52.836 --> 00:04:59.411 can result in a real loss of trust among coworkers and significantly impact productivity. 00:05:00.376 --> 00:05:05.088 The bottom line is - just like any other kind of illegal behavior 00:05:05.113 --> 00:05:08.393 retaliation has no place in our organization. 00:05:08.602 --> 00:05:12.750 We all have a responsibility to make sure we prevent it. 00:05:12.775 --> 00:05:20.483 And, if we become aware of retaliation by anyone, at any level, we absolutely must report it. 00:05:21.157 --> 00:05:26.329 By working to prevent retaliation, we can help foster that necessary level of trust, 00:05:26.354 --> 00:05:34.165 respect and teamwork that will help ensure we continue to make our organization a great place to work. 00:05:43.903 --> 00:05:49.744 As managers, supervisors and team leaders, we have a special responsibility 00:05:49.745 --> 00:05:55.528 to ensure the professional and compliant behavior of everyone in our organization. 00:05:55.734 --> 00:06:00.192 And our actions significantly impact whether people will feel comfortable 00:06:00.217 --> 00:06:05.204 coming forward with any questions, issues or concerns that they may have. 00:06:05.776 --> 00:06:11.139 We also need to keep in mind that it's become significantly easier for employees 00:06:11.164 --> 00:06:16.853 to successfully claim they've suffered retaliation as the result of voicing concerns about 00:06:16.862 --> 00:06:20.910 something that might be illegal, unsafe or unethical. 00:06:21.218 --> 00:06:25.314 So, to prevent retaliation in our workplace... 00:06:25.339 --> 00:06:32.469 We need to learn how to recognize situations that have the potential to become or are retaliation. 00:06:32.891 --> 00:06:38.942 We need to respond immediately by reporting and investigating those situations. 00:06:39.023 --> 00:06:43.597 And we need to follow our organization's policy and procedures 00:06:43.622 --> 00:06:47.408 for resolving situations involving retaliation. 00:06:47.820 --> 00:06:55.300 Now, before we can respond to and resolve issues, we have to learn how to recognize retaliation. 00:06:55.325 --> 00:07:01.200 So, let's take a look at a few examples of what it looks like in the workplace.