Why Corporate Need To Be POSH Essentials Trained?

What Is POSH Law?

With the increasing cases of sexual harassment, the Prevention of Sexual Harassment of women at workplace (POSH) Act came into existence on 9^th December 2013. Along with prevention, the act also focuses on prohibition and redressal of sexual harassment towards women at workplace.

The Act was essentially based on Vishakha guidelines, which were derived from the case Vishakha and others v. State of Rajasthan which was filed by the NGOs against the Rajasthan government as one of the female social workers was raped, when she tried to stop a child marriage, which was part of her duty.

What Is POSH Training Course?

The POSH training course is helpful in understanding and providing safe space to discuss about sexual harassment at workplace. It is helpful to understand the appropriate and inappropriate workplace behaviours, it gives guidelines about workplace sexual harassment and helps in understanding how to deal with it.

The POSH training is given in the organizations to familiarize every employee and the employer about the POSH law, sensitize them towards gender equality and to help the IC members to take appropriate action when a complaint is registered.

What Does The POSH Training Course Include?

The POSH training course helps the organizations to address the issue of workplace sexual harassment towards women, and work on points of making the workplace safer for their female employees and employers.

To understand it, the POSH training courses usually include following points:

• What is sexual harassment: This includes the basic knowledge about sexual harassment and making the participants understand what behaviours can come under workplace sexual harassment.
• The POSH Law: The explanation of the law and its sub-points in simple and understandable language.
• Consequences of Sexual harassment: This includes the list of penalties or actions that can be taken against the offender, if they are non-compliant to the Act.
• Registering a complaint: Often, the female employee or employer is unaware of whom to approach in the case of sexual harassment at workplace. This point will make them understand the detailed procedure of the same.
• The ICC: Making every participant understand how the Internal Complaint Committee (ICC) works to provide justice regarding the topic.
• Positive workplace: This enables the employees and employers to understand how to control the workplace sexual harassment of women, which will be helpful in providing a positive work environment.
• Discussions: Practical application, role plays and discussions regarding the topic to ensure in-depth knowledge of the topic.

What Are POSH Training Objectives?

The objectives of the POSH training are to ensure professional growth of women in the working sector by prevention of sexual harassment towards them at the workplace, to provide safe workplace to women by eradicating sexual offenses towards them, irrespective of them being employed or not.

Furthermore, the training aims are making every organization implement the POSH law and establish the Internal Committee, which can be made possible when each and every individual in that organization is well informed about the POSH Law and its criteria.

POSH Training Requirements

Even though it is most beneficiary for Internal Committee members, heads of organization and management team; any member of the organization, employee or employer, who is willing to know more about the law and its effects can enrol for the training course.

POSH Training Course Outcome

Completing the POSH training course will help in creating more awareness in the working sector, it will ensure responsibility that every individual must take towards women safety. The course will enable many employees and employers to take right steps to stand against sexual harassment of women at workplace.

The POSH training course will also ensure improvement in the workplace culture and respect towards the colleagues.

Why Is POSH Training Important?

Even though the main aim of POSH training is to build awareness regarding how to prevent the sexual harassment of women at workplace.

POSH training is essentially important for following reasons:

• Understanding the differentiation: This course makes everyone understand to differentiate between sexual harassment cases from non-sexual harassment cases and behaviors.
• False accusations: Even though the law is made for women, it is quite possible that few women can take advantage of this in a wrong way. The course will help a person to understand how to prove their innocence in cases of false sexual harassment accusations.
• Inquiry report: The training will help every participant to understand how the inquiry report is made by the committee and what all it should and should not contain.
• Destigmatizing registration of a complaint: Most of the times, the female worker hesitates to lodge a complaint against the offender due to fear of her reputation getting tarnished, fear of losing her job etc. The course proves to be essential to help women take that one step and seek justice
• A safe environment: When an employee knows that their company conducts such awareness programs, that means they put their trust on the organization, that they will be working in a safe environment. This helps the company towards employee retention.

Related Blog: Why Is POSH Training Important?

Who Should Enroll For POSH Training Course?

The best feature of this course is that anyone who wishes to know about the prevention of sexual harassment at workplace, the POSH law, determinants of sexual harassment can attend this course.

POSH training course can prove to be of utmost importance to following members of an organization or a company:

1. POSH training for employees and managers:

The course helps these members to equip themselves with the information, law and punishments associated with workplace sexual harassment.

2. POSH training for heads of organizations:

The heads of organizations get information about how to increase job satisfaction amongst their employees by ensuring safety of women employees and taking actions against anyone who misbehaves with them. It also gives an insight on how to not let an incidence tarnish the company reputation.

3. POSH training for individuals:

It is always better to know about new, upcoming laws which are for human betterment, and POSH training course gives such an opportunity for any individual to learn about it.

4. POSH training for committee members:

The POSH training helps the ICC i.e., the Internal Complaints Committee, to understand how to address a complaint in an ethical and legal way.

Why Corporates Need To Be POSH Essentials Trained?

As per the Indian Government rule, any organization with more than 10 employees should mandate POSH Act by establishing an ICC committee. The training also helps the corporates to understand-

1. Where does the Act apply: Any workplace; public or private sector, government or non-government organizations, absolutely any place that a woman visits as an employee, client, customer or as a domestic help.
2. The ICC: The ICC should have one woman who works as Presiding Officer, appointed by senior management, an external member from an NGO or a lawyer and two members who would be representing the employees.
3. Who would be responsible: The heads of institution, management  and employers would be held responsible if they fail to follow the POSH guidelines?
4. The penalty: Failing to form a committee or breaching any guidelines of POSH, the employer can be fined upto Rs. 50,000.

Where To Get Training On POSH Laws?

To be familiar with POSH Laws, one needs to undergo a thorough POSH training which is conducted by the companies and organizations. Apart from that, one can enroll individually for the POSH training which are now conducted online as well.

POSH Training Cost

The training cost for POSH program varies as per the organization or individual needs. It depends on who the training is curated for and what does the training consist of. However, the cost of POSH training starts from Rs.1500/-.

Let’s all take a vow to protect the women and prevent any lewd behavior towards them and make workplaces a safe space to let women use their potential, grow and reach new levels of success!

The Sakaal Media Group is taking their own small step towards creating an awareness of Preventing sexual harassment towards women at workplace by conducting an Online POSH Training Course, which is accredited by Maharashtra State Commission for Women. The course will be delivered by experts in this field. If you want to know more about the course or want to enroll for the same, you can visit here.