Dive Brief:
- Similarly to the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) Corporate Equality Index, which sets standards for and monitors how organizations respect LGBTQ employees' rights, the new organization the Purple Campaign will act as a watchdog for sexual harassment in workplaces, Fortune reported. Ally Coll, the campaign's co-founder, told the magazine that an "outside certification model" similar to HRC's could hold employers accountable for eliminating sexual misconduct, as "other third parties, like courts and lawmakers, are failing" to establish standards or expectations.
- Eligibility for certification is predicated on six criteria, according to the campaign's site. Employers must make policies to set workplace norms for harassment; ensure effective employee training on the topic; improve internal reporting systems; create fair procedures for investigation and adjudication; track success and make improvements; address the intersectionality of workplace harassment.
- Uber, Amazon, Airbnb and Expedia have joined the pilot campaign, according to its website.
Dive Insight:
Not all of the tech industry heavyweights that signed on with the campaign have solid records when it comes to harassment or alleged harassment. Uber settled harassment and discrimination claims brought forward by women and people of color in its organization just last year. The company has since taken steps to overhaul its culture, announcing a commitment to advance diversity and inclusion within the company by linking its D&I goals to some executive compensation. Coll told Fortune, however, that she credits these companies for recognizing their internal problems by signing as corporate partners.
In response to workers' and consumers' demands for change in the era of #MeToo, some CEOs are taking more proactive stances against the behavior. Integris Software CEO Kristina Bergman, for example, required in 2017 that investors in her company agree to vote out corporate board directors if there was a "reasonable probability" that they committed such misconduct, saying that workplace harassment is an open secet in tech. Increased advocacy from third parties like the Purple Campaign may further encourage organizations to step up their efforts to eliminate sexual misconduct in the workplace.
Employers that partner with third parties or work to eliminate sexual misconduct on their own can improve their chances of successfully competing for and retaining talent. Job seekers today have access to online company rating sites, and routinely pass over companies with low ratings. And workers have protested employers' practices on sexual harassment and discrimination when they have considered them wrong or inadequate.
