In 1993 a Chicago based research firm reported that $4.2 billion was being spent on issues of workplace violence. In the wake of such events as Oklahoma City bombing, Columbine, 9/11 Virginia Tech and Northern Ill. University, this figure has climbed much higher. Although I don’t know the new figure, I do know we are paying more attention to issues of safety. We have worked with clients who give safety procedures prior to any session. They inform the group which exit to use in the event of a disaster, who will be the “lead person” in exiting the building, etc.
Like so many other things in life we tend to pay attention to those things that are tangible or that we can see. Underneath what is visible are the intangibles. This is also true when we approach the issue of safety. In addition to physical safety, consider three other types of safety that need to be addressed: political safety, emotional safety and spiritual safety.
Political safety has to do with employee fear of repercussions (i.e. losing out on a promotion) by saying what’s really on their mind. Emotional safety deals with being ostracized for not conforming to main stream or normative culture. And spiritual safety focuses on the struggle we have in allowing for religious differences in our workplace.
Several years ago I was working with a government agency that had a fairly strong diversity initiative. A significant conflict arose between the Christian and Gay/Lesbian affinity groups that impacted all the other groups. The administrator directed all affinity groups to go away for two days with the directive to work out the conflicts or else he was going to shut down the entire diversity program. I was the consultant in the room with members from these different groups.
We began our work to break down stereotypes and misconceptions each group had of the other. Most notably the Christian and Gay/Lesbian representatives had to have some very hard discussions about the fears and prejudices they had towards one another. Both groups came to realize that they were being victimized by different stereotypes that weren’t necessarily true for individuals who came from those particular groups. They began to see the common denominators and impacts of pain and prejudice. At sessions’ end, they agreed to tell all employees about their respective groups and they also agreed to have dinner with each other from time to time. The net result was that when we went back nine months later we found that the groups were working together respectfully while still being clear about the issues they couldn’t agree upon.
Respect does not mean compromising your values or beliefs. Likewise, speaking one’s mind doesn’t mean you can say anything you want when you want. But we do need to create an environment where people can be heard; where they will be treated as people of value; where they will know that their work makes a difference to the team and organization at large.
So what do employers need to do in order to create a safe work environment? Consider the following suggestions:
Create a positive climate. Make sure the individual worker can be free to say what is on their mind without fear of reprisal.
Strengthen your ability to listen to different view points while still maintaining your own belief systems.
Discuss and develop rules of engagement. Be clear about what are acceptable and unacceptable behaviors.
Make sure people are clear about what is expected. Examples like honoring timelines and agreements, using appropriate language, etc.
Increase your awareness of different communications styles which may be impacting group interaction. Many times we have found that individuals mean well, but have no idea that the conflict they are experiencing is due to communication style differences.
The managers and leaders of today’s workplace need to steadily increase their competence in serving a diversified employee base. This includes the need to pay attention to safety issues which, from my vantage point is the place to begin establishing harmony on the job.
Steve Hanamura, president of Hanamura Consulting, Inc., and author of I Can See Clearly: A Different Look at Leadership, has 30 years of experience working with organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to regional not-for-profit institutions. He is widely sought after in the areas of leadership development, building effective teams, leading diversity initiatives and managing generational differences.
He can be reached by phone at 503-297-8658 or by e-mail at sh@hanamuraconsulting.com
