[30 Min Live Discussion with Experts] on ‘All you need to know about PoSH Compliances’; 3:30 to 4:00PM, September 2nd, 2022

General Discussions
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A safe workplace is the basic right of every employee. It is important for employees to know

  • What is sexual harassment
  • How to seek help if they face sexual harassment
  • Who to report to if they face or observe sexual harassment
  • What are the rights of the employee

This makes an employee trust the leadership and builds a company culture where employees experience psychological safety.

People will stay longer in a company where they feel physically and emotionally safe.

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22

What is an Internal Committee? Who constitutes it?

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23

The Internal committee is responsible for the prevention, prohibition, and redressal of sexual harassment in the workplace.

  • The IC is made up of 4 internal members and 1 external member
  • It is chaired by the Presiding Officer who is the senior most female employee in the company
  • More than 50% of the committee members have to be female

Some best practices are

  • Appoint those familiar or aware of gender issues
  • Explain to the members that they will have to commit to time in case of an inquiry and for the quarterly meetings
  • Someone who is mature to deal with sensitive issues
  • Someone you can be trusted to uphold the confidentiality
  • The committee should be trained every year on the law and on how to be fair, empathetic, and unbiased during a PoSH enquiry.
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24

How can companies implement PoSH?

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According to the PoSH Act, all companies with more than 10 employees are expected to have the following in place

  • A company PoSH policy written in accordance with the Act
  • Appoint an Internal Committee (IC) with 1 external member
  • Display the policy and IC contact information on the office notice board
  • Conduct an awareness training for all employees every year between January to December
  • Conduct a capacity-building session for all IC members every year between January to December
  • File the annual report to the Deputy Officer at the end of every year
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26

What are the steps taken when a case is filed?

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  • Respond to the Complainant with empathy
  • Ensure that confidentiality is maintained
  • If there is a physical threat to the Complainant, ask if they wish to file a police complaint
  • Strictly follow the timelines mentioned in the Act
  • Keep the Complainant and Respondent updated about the timelines
  • Record and document all meetings
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28

What is the penalty if someone is found guilty under the PoSH act?

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  • Formal apology
  • Counselling
  • Written warning to the Respondent
  • Change of work assignment/transfer for either the Respondent or the Complainant
  • Suspension or termination of services of the employee found guilty of the offence
  • Withholding of promotion
  • Reduction to a lower stage of pay
  • Withholding of increments of pay
  • Removal or Dismissal from service
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What is the penalty for filing false complaints under PoSH act?

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31

In case the complaint is found to be intentionally false and malicious, the Complainant is liable for appropriate corrective action.

In cases where there is insufficient evidence to prove that harassment has taken place then IC would deem the complaint not proven and not file the same as a false complaint and the complainant will not be liable.

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32

How can PoSH be implemented in a Covid-19 scenario?

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  • Follow the usual mandates for IC training, employee awareness setting up a committee and drafting the policy
  • Additionally, explain to employees how PoSH extends to the virtual space and WFH
  • Have quarterly town halls so employees can interact with the IC member
  • Regular communication through mailers on the company’s stand on employee safety
  • Train IC members on the nuances of conducting a virtual inquiry
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34

What is PoSH training?

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35

Hi,

On completion of the 3 year tenure of the IC members, in case there is a shortage of eligible members to be nominated to the new IC, can we give a break of a few days to the old members and re-appoint them to the IC to meet the requirement of law?

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36

The PoSH training is to be designed in accordance with the guideline in the Rules. It includes

What is sexual harassment?
How to seek help if they face sexual harassment
Who to report to if they face or observe sexual harassment
What are the rights of the employee - Confidentiality, Interim protection among others

** Note - Due to some concerns Ms. Chryslynn is not able to post her response, hence I am sharing the response on behalf of her

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Thank you so much Ms. Chryslynn D’Costa ( especially extending to address so many user queries after the scheduled session time) You are awesome!

It was very insightful, informative and knowledgeable for all. It was indeed a great session of abundance of knowledge on PoSH Compliances and building a safe workplace free from sexual harrasment. Thank you for creating an amazing experience for our members.

Community members, in case there are any unanswered questions, please post it in the thread or in the community directly, our experts will guide you with your doubts.

We are thankful to each and everyone who attended, liked and viewed the session.

So, we are now coming to a close to this edition of LIVE discussion with the expert on the greytHR community. This thread will always be available for reference. Any questions which went unanswered will be responded latest by monday.

Closing now. See you in the next LIVE soon!

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38

Hello Deepa,

It has been prescribed that the Presiding Officer and every Member of the IC shall hold office for such a period not exceeding 3 years, from the date of their nomination as may be specified by the employer.
It is necessary that the employer shall keep track of the tenure of each member and shall ensure that the new member is nominated to IC after the completion of 3 years.

However, there is no specific clause in the Act disqualifying members of the outgoing committee for re-appointment.
However, we do not recommend the same. We recommend following the letter of the law to avoid any compliance issues during future audits.

Warm regards,

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39

Hi,

Please could you share the recorded session for POSH for my reference as I couldn’t attend it?

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40

Hey @DeeptiPatil ,

Hope you are doing well.

Our team is currently working on editing the video. Once its ready will share the link here for everyone’s reference.

Regards,

Community Manager.

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