#MeToo #SexualHarassment #ExitInterview #WorkplaceCulture #HR #EqualityInTheWorkplace
It’s definitely a tough situation to be in, but it’s important to weigh your options carefully before deciding whether or not to bring up the issue of sexual harassment in your exit interview.
Here are a few things to consider:
1. Why Consider Bringing it Up
– It’s important to remember that speaking up about sexual harassment in the workplace not only helps you, but it could also protect future employees from experiencing similar situations.
– By addressing the issue, you can help shed light on the company’s toxic workplace culture and hold them accountable for their actions.
2. Potential Consequences
– There is a possibility that bringing up the issue in your exit interview could lead to the company taking legal action against you.
– It’s important to consider the potential impact on your future job prospects, as some employers may see you as a liability if they think you’re prone to causing trouble in the workplace.
3. Your Comfort Level
– It’s crucial to prioritize your own mental and emotional well-being. If discussing the incident in your exit interview would only serve to bring up painful memories and cause unnecessary stress, it might be best to focus on moving forward.
4. Seeking Legal Advice
– If you’re unsure about whether or not to address the issue in your exit interview, it might be helpful to consult with a legal professional to discuss your options and the potential repercussions.
In conclusion, whether or not to bring up the issue of sexual harassment in your exit interview is a personal decision that requires careful consideration. It’s essential to prioritize your own well-being and make the choice that feels right for you.
Ultimately, it’s important to remember that you have the right to be heard and to work in an environment free from harassment and discrimination. If you do decide to address the issue in your exit interview, make sure to do so in a calm and professional manner, sticking to the facts without allowing emotions to take over.
Remember, your voice matters, and speaking up could potentially make a positive impact on the company’s future policies and workplace culture.
Glad to know you’re leaving what sounds like a horrible situation.
If HR didn’t do anything the first time, I can’t imagine an exit interview would change that. Which is disgusting and pitiful. Honestly, if I were you, though, I WOULD mention it, for this reason:
>this is something that may make them believe I’m trying to sue/file a complaint
Doesn’t matter if you don’t do it. Let them sweat, and lose a few nights of sleep over it, wondering if you will. Sounds like they deserve it.
You have nothing to lose so I would absolutely use the opportunity to highlight how poorly they handled the whole situation. Tell them exactly how you felt while the sexual harassment took place, while they mismanaged it, and when he was rewarded for his bad behaviour. Give ’em hell!
Am I assuming you don’t need this company for anything? Then sure, be honest.
Oh hell yes. If you put details on the record they will be discoverable when the inevitable sexual harassment lawsuit by a subsequent victim comes along. They knew what happened and they fucking promoted him.
You should sue, they don’t give a s*** about you and it’ll happen to someone else. Don’t quit, get an attorney and have them file a constructive termination for you.
Why waste your time.
Write an email copying the CEO, and head of HR. And whoever the POSH head in your org is. And definitely bring a copy of said email to the exit interview.
Exit interviews are not required, you can state you do not want to attend it. In fact in this case it may be better if you do not go to this one. If you do go forward be super careful about what you do say as it can be used against you should you decide to go to a lawyer or if they think you may go to a lawyer, especially given what happened.
If they chose that course of action (inaction) over your SH claim, the only reason they’re asking for an exit interview is to feel out whether you’ll sue them. It’s not because they plan to make changes about anything.
I am not a lawyer, but if you do choose to have the exit interview, I’d consult with one first. I personally would decline the interview to make them sweat about it but also to reduce any possibility that they have anything on record that they could use to retaliate against you on the chance you do take legal action at any point.
Set them on fire in GlassDoor reviews. Do *not* sign any confidentiality agreement. Hell, I’d consider getting a lawyer and suing them if you have proof. Forward any emails that prove what happened to your personal email.
I’m not sure it’s to your advantage to do an exit interview. Unless you’re getting a severance and an exit interview is required to receive it.
I would.
There isn’t much they can do to you now. But you can help others still there.
the answer is A BIG FAT YES
Yes, absolutely. You could be saving someone else from it.
I think you should consider consulting with an attorney. My cousin got a huge lawsuit when HR refused to address her harassment properly. If you choose not to do that, I hope you knife that guy’s tires on the way out.
Exit interview should be done by a lawyer it seems but sure voice your grievance to the void that is HR if you want.
Do not participate in an exit interview. There is absolutely no benefit for you, but there are potential downsides for you.
A lot of the other comments in here are rational, altruistic and well-intentioned. But they’re all inexperienced.
Please speak up for the safety of the next person!
Lotta bad advice in here.
It sounds like what you went through was a pretty normal response. If there were no witnesses, and there’s no pattern of behavior to reference, what did you want them to do? Fire him based on your word? That’s not how it works.
Telling you not to talk about it is pretty standard. Unless you think he’s attacking someone else, you shouldn’t be stoking a fire that’s been addressed.
It sounds like they addressed your concern and made efforts to stop it moving forward. Again, if it was the first allegation with no witnesses, that’s all they can do. You don’t have unilateral authority to fire anyone you want.
You are also unaware of what they did or said to him in private.
It sounds like he was slated for the promotion long before the HR complaint.
Don’t do the exit interview. You’ll only be burning your own bridges with everyone involved for no gain.
If the company did nothing when you first brought it forward, unfortunately there’s no reason to believe they’ll do anything about it now. So there are really 2 things to consider:
* What are the potential negative impacts to you if you bring it up in the exit interview? Would they not be a reference going forward, is it a small industry where they could hurt your reputation by planting seeds that you’re hard to work with, etc.?
* What are the potential positive impacts to you if you bring it up in the exit interview? Will it make you feel better and give you closure, will it help prevent this from happening to someone else, will it create an official record that something happened if other people come forward about this guy, etc.?
Once you’ve considered what the positive and negative impacts are, then you have to decide if the positives are worth the negatives to you. It’s not your responsibility to set yourself on fire to save someone else from the cold, but if you can potentially help someone else without major harm to yourself it would be a kind thing to do. And the end of the day the only “right” option is the one that works best for you. Whatever you decide, remember that you did nothing wrong. I’m sorry you are having to deal with this.
ABSOLUTELY!!!! You better bring it up. If people don’t bring it up, it will never get better.
If you are trying to sue / file a complaint *absolutely* ignore everyone here and talk to a lawyer first. You *will* say something you shouldn’t and invalidate any chance at a case you may have.
It may already be too late to get the evidence you need, but the last thing you want is to put them on guard. The first time they have any idea the lawsuit is coming should be a letter from your lawyer.
Yes, the HR team should document the behavior and potential investigation in the person’s file. This report, even if ignored, could be future evidence to another victim when they request and report the same thing.
The way the company handled you claim is standard. So many people here do not understand the processes of claims.
Additionally, you weren’t threatened to be fired bc of a sexual harassment claim, you were warned to not speak of the investigation. Again, that is standard. As much as you feel you were wronged, at the end of the day, it’s a claim you made against someone else. The company must investigate and determine the findings. If there is no concrete evidence of harassment, they handled it correctly.
You should definitely tell them about your treatment with the sexual harassment. If this co worker put his hand on you thigh, this is considered an assault so maybe it would help to use the assault word in your exit interview
Don’t do the exit interview and hire a lawyer
Yes, do more than bring it up.
“On advice of legal counsel, I am ending my employment here at [company]. I cannot maintain employment with an organization that not only refuses to keep me safe, but promotes a sexual harasser. I will not be answering any questions at this time.”
Then leave. If you haven’t already spoken to legal counsel, do so between now and then.
Why would you not be honest?
Yes and also follow it up with an email for your records.
I would bring it up. The thing about HR is they are NOT there to protect the employees, they are there to protect the business.
Who’s conducting the exit interview? The same HR rep who more or less ignored the problem?
Please do report it, and please also send an email to your boss’ boss or boss’ boss’ boss thanking them for the time and development at the organization AND sharing some information that might be helpful for them to know for the future. This may help future employees, creates documentation that they know about these issues and failed to act, and may result in a settlement offer. Before sending, save/email a copy of all records of your boss’ behavior, your sexual harassment complaint, and the timing of the promotion to your personal account. You can also request a copy of your personnel file, which would be needed for a suit. Then send cc’ing your personal email.
Good luck with your new job, and please do talk with a therapist about this experience. Work-related ptsd is a real thing.
Eg.
Good morning,
You may be aware that I’ve accepted an offer from another organization and that my last day with “organization” is fast approaching. I was recently asked to participate in an exit interview and that prompted me to reach out to you directly to ensure that my experience reached someone I trust within “org”. This email is intended to be helpful to you in providing unfiltered feedback regarding members of your team that I’m unsure you have heard, and to benefit current and future employees and their experience working at “org”.
First, in my experience, “Boss” reacts poorly when frustrated which seems to happen frequently. Being exposed to their anger had an impact on my ability to focus and on our team’s cohesion. For example… *list 2-3 concise examples*
Second, I’m not sure you were aware of the concerns I reported about “coworker’s” conduct. As confirmed through an internal investigation by HR, he sexually harassed me repeatedly, including unwelcome touching. As you know, sexual harassment is taken very seriously these days, and due to my loyalty to “organization “, I chose not to report this externally or to pursue legal options. I was very disappointed that no action was taken and that instead, “coworker ” was promoted. Looking at that timeline of events: confirmed sexual harassment, promotion, you may understand why I’m leaving with the impression that illegal conduct and creating an unsafe work environment is rewarded at “organization”.
Finally, I’d like to share that my experience with our HR team was very unfortunate. From the time I reported the harassment, I felt unsupported and even treated as though I were the one doing something wrong by coming forward. The HR representative told me that I was not permitted to discuss having been harassed, which, as you know, is unlawful. Perhaps employment law training for that team would be helpful. Also, the outcome of my confirmed allegation was that I was required to participate in the same harassment prevention training as my harasser. Then, he was promoted.
At present, I plan to move on to my next chapter and leave this behind me, other than continuing therapy to process the work environment created by my “boss” and “coworker ” and apparently permitted within “org”. Being transparent, the statute of limitations for a claim is open and I may choose to pursue action to protect potential future victims of “coworker ” since I have zero assurance that “organization ” acted in a way to preventfutureharassment. Though I had many good experiences during my tenure and appreciate my time here, I am leaving with a bad impression of management’s commitment to a safe work environment, which makes me sad.
If you would like to discuss any of the issues shared in this email, my last day is x, and I can be reached at…
Sincerely,
…
Skip the exit interview altogether. You have no legal or professional obligation to attend an exit interview, and it is of absolutely no benefit to you. HR already knows about the sexual harassments and has addressed it. Perhaps not to your liking, but now that you are quitting, you pretty much lose any leverage you may have had. HR is already aware of the possibility of a lawsuit. That’s why the took steps to address the issue and I’m sure they’ve documented everything to make them look good should a lawsuit ever be filed.
Absolutely say something. The work atmosphere sucks. Anger and sexual harassment is no way to work.
Smells like a lawsuit once you put everything on the record!
If they have you do an exit interview, it’s likely they will have a lawyer or recorder present. Watch what you say.
If it was me, I would let them burn and not participate.
I think you should report this to the EEOC or talk to an employment lawyer. Keep your records of any emails, and dates etc.
As satisfying as it would be to blast them for it face to face, I don’t think it would lead to a decent outcome and it opens the door for too much retaliation.
I’m always leery of burning bridges, you never know who you will end up next to in the future.
If they feel singled out for failing to protect you, they will probably use your absence to run down your reputation internally and you won’t be there to defend yourself. That drip of negativity can turn neutral people against you, people you might be working with again in the future.
They’ve already decided that it wasn’t a big deal by promoting the guy and they probably consider the matter closed. If they consider it closed, they’ll just roll their eyes and think you’re crazy, then talk shit with whoever is left in the boat, which is Mr handsy and anyone that will listen to him. So I wouldn’t give them that opportunity to run you down.
It sounds like they did everything they were “legally required” to do but that doesn’t mean they made decent moral decisions. But they are less likely to try and sabotage you if the matter appears to stay handled.
If life was a movie I would encourage you to go all Erin Brockovich, have your day and celebrate a victory, but I just don’t see it going down that way and I would do what I could to mitigate any back door sniping they could do.
I’ve seen a few vengeful employers cross some questionable lines to try and retaliate against ex-employees and while it was disgusting behavior but it was done in a way that would have been difficult to prove, even if they had my help documenting it inside of the company.
You’re out. You’re onto better things. Leave that place behind. Mitigate any damage they can do to you in the future.
I know that isn’t very satisfying but “fuck them kids”.
Yes mention it. The company needs to understand they are losing talent due to bad personnel practices
Check and see if you are in a one party recording state. If you are, then it could be helpful to bring these issues up and see how they respond. Get it recorded to submit in the future. Likely they will state they handled it properly and it was appropriate to promote that employee. Either pursue or just keep it as likely someone else will be in your same place soon. Also as you leave make sure to connect with the women you know in the company he could likely hit on. Share contact info incase something does happen you will create a network. Enough cases makes this worthwhile, possibly, for a law firm to take the case for a percentage.
*I’m just wondering if this is something I should mention in an exit interview*
Yes.
I mean what are you supposed to expect them to do? They made him go through sexual harassment training and did the right thing to separate both of you and not let you both get close.