Early ’90s put the spotlight on training
By: George Spohr
PRINCETON Among myriad subjects now commonly addressed in employee training is harassment.
Sexual harassment, as well as age, disability and race discrimination, are among the types of harassment employees experience in the workplace.
But it wasn’t until the early 1990s that sexual harassment and discrimination training became a higher priority for companies large and small, says Judith Lindenberger, president of The Lindenberger Group, a Princeton-based company that provides human-resource consulting and training.
During the Clarence Thomas Supreme Court confirmation hearings in 1991, sexual harassment was brought to the forefront when Thomas was accused of harassing an employee, Anita Hill.
"This was a wake-up call for companies," Ms. Lindenberger said.
Harassment and discrimination of all types can hurt businesses. According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in the past 10 years, the average jury verdict in a case of sexual harassment was $250,000, not including legal fees, court costs and punitive damages, making it the most expensive harassment complaint.
"With such significant jury verdicts, companies have to take the issue seriously," Ms. Lindenberger said.
Ms. Lindenberger presented workshop, Avoid a Time Bomb: Sexual Harassment, at the New Jersey Organization Development Network Annual Sharing Day May 5.
This is the third consecutive year that The Lindenberger Group has been selected to present at the conference. In the 1980s, Ms. Lindenberger was one of the first people to design and conduct sexual harassment training and has since developed both classroom-based on on-line training.