Companies lose millions of dollars defending themselves in harassment lawsuits.  They lose millions more in court awarded cases.  Employees want to work in an environment that is as safe and welcoming as possible.  

Knowing they are respected as individuals allows employees to contribute more productively to your company.   This happens because they spend less time second-guessing how to interpret behaviors and consequences.  Company leaders have a responsibility to assure a safe environment for everybody.  It pays off in many ways.

Preventing harassment also adds to profits by lowering cost of employee turnover, absenteeism, and low productivity due to low morale.

C. Harris Companies, Inc. can teach you steps to safeguard your business and your employees from harassment and avoid costly legal settlements.

The speaker, will customize a program to facilitate employees’ empathy and mutual respect. She will use proven open dialogue methods to explore the dynamics and framework in a workplace environment that may unintentionally support power, privilege, and biases that contribute to behaviors described as harassment. This presentation delivers best workplace practices designed to identify and eliminate unprofessional and discriminatory conduct in the workplace.

Objectives:

  • Explore legal definitions of harassment
    • Discuss what are and what are not harassing behaviors
    • Discuss the impact on the victim and the workplace climate
    • Discuss best practice prevention strategies 
    • Identify the role & responsibilities employees have relating to preventing  harassment and protecting employees

As a result of this presentation you will:
– Better understand what harassment is.

– Understand how harassment impacts both the person and the mission.
– Learn to identify and prevent harassment


Presented by: Deborah Love, JD

P.O. Box 871537 * New Orleans, LA 70187 * Phone: 504-241-3255 * Website: www.cathyharris.com

Meet Deborah Love, J.D.

DEBORAH LOVE, J.D. joined Tulane University on October 1, 2004, as the Vice President for the Office of Institutional Equity. Prior to her appointment at Tulane, she served as the Associate Vice President for Diversity and Equal Opportunity at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, from February 2002 to October 2004. Love also held the position of Director of the Center for Human Rights at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington from 1996 to 2002. She has a law degree from the University of Mississippi. Love is a graduate of the Harvard Management Development Program and the HERS Leadership Institute at Bryn Mawr College. Love served as a distinguished Officer in the United States Military Police Corps and achieved the rank of Captain. Love has one daughter. Her name is Ashley Love and she graduated from Tulane with her bachelor’s and master’s degree.

She has been active with the Louisiana Bar Association where she was part of the Bar’s diversity and inclusion training corps and has been a speaker and trainer for C. Harris Companies, Inc. for six years.

Deborah is recognized for her interactive and engaging presentations and workshops.

We Produce Results!

“Cathy Harris’ diversity initiative reduced the number of EEO complaints by 30 percent and saved us over $880,000 in administrative costs.”

            Gary Thornton,
            EEO Manager, USDA

“My assistant has given you the highest recommendation after attending your public workshop on sexual harassment prevention.  She insisted that you energized your participants and were on-target about significant learning points – and she was right.

The feedback following your daylong facilitation has been plentiful and enthusiastic.  The managers have stopped me in the hall, left messages on my message service and sent me e-mail to document how valuable the session was for them.  They really enjoyed the non-traditional and interactive style in which you organized the program…in a non-confrontational and safe environment.

                                                                        Margaret Deane

                                                                        Director of Human Resources

                                                                        Windsor Court Hotel (New Orleans)

“While all of the C. Harris and Companies training has been outstanding, perhaps the greatest success in our two and one-half year relationship is the 3-day “Diversity Strategies that Pay Off” training conducted over the past 18 months.

I appreciate the fact that you and your highly skilled trainers took the time to really get to know our agency and then worked very closely with us to design a diversity training program that suited our particular needs.  I have been particularly impressed with your trainers’ skills and professionalism in dealing with sensitive issues surrounding race, gender, and equal opportunity.  A number of employees have commented that the

C. Harris Companies diversity training was the best they have attended.  I attended one

C. Harris Companies diversity training session and I concur with my employees’ assessment.

Your work with the Center has been a factor in creating a unified, productive, and positive workforce and work atmosphere.  C. Harris Companies helped us establish a structure that supports the development of ideas and programs that encourage communication, cultural diversity, and cooperation.”                         John R. Ortego

                                                                        Director

                                                                        USDA/National Finance Center

“The workshops conducted provided a safe forum for sensitive issues to be discussed.  The facilitators taught employees how to open dialogue which dealt with race, gender, education and organization hierarchy.  Each of us learned how these variables affected how we did things in the plant.

With your help we were able to develop long term strategies which would improve our efforts in dealing with diversity and plant productivity. 

However, the overall payoff from our involvement in the diversity process has come from the operator’s themselves.

There is no doubt that the training has caused us to better understand the cultural differences which exist among us and had enabled us to better manage these situations.”

                                                                        Les Holland

                                                                        Human Resources Manager

The information shared indicated you were knowledgeable and well informed about the Americans With Disabilities Act and sexual harassment issues.  The knowledge obtained by our staff will assist in their personal development as they grow and become outstanding managers and future leaders of this organization. I am still receiving complimentary remarks…  We look forward to the opportunity to work with you in the future.  Thanks again for a job well done!

                                                                        William J. DeVille

                                                                        General Manager

                                                                        Transit Management of Southeast Louisiana

                                                                        Chevron Chemical Company

 “I really enjoyed this seminar!  I felt like you could see inside of our office, and read my mind.  I learned so much that I could take back, I left very excited!  Everything was helpful.” 

Rita Pinero,

Jefferson Parish Employees Federal Credit Union

 “I learned that if at any time someone feels uncomfortable because of sexual content… it’s harassment.  I will be careful not to offend.”

                                                                        E. Preston, Participant

“[This was] very informative; a program that should be given to major corporations.  I liked the in-depth explanation of the law concerning sexual harassment.”                                                                                                                           Raymond Perossier, Jr., Participant

“This program was very informative in clarifying the issue of harassment.   What I liked best was the interaction between all people involved.  “                                                                                                                                                           Robert Clapp. Participant