Written by When folks began working from home during the time of the COVID-19 outbreak, it looked like an improvement. Most enjoyed having the liberty, convenience, and improved work-life balance. Working from home, however, created a new issue: online harassment.
This type of harassment doesn’t occur face-to-face. It occurs online—via emails, chat applications, video conferences, and other digital tools people use to work from home. It’s less visible, but can be just as damaging.
What Is Digital Harassment?
Digital harassment is when a person is bullied, disrespected, or made to feel uneasy through digital technologies. This can include:
- Sending obscene or offensive messages
- Forcing an individual to enable their camera when video conferencing
- Excluding an individual from meetings or work discussions
- Obsessively monitoring someone’s work or excessively reviewing it
- Cyberstalking or publishing personal info online
These behaviors emotionally and psychologically damage people. Although most often evidence exists in the form of messages or recordings, there are still instances that go unreported or unpursued.
Why It’s Worse with Remote Work
Working remotely has altered the way people communicate. There are no personal meetings, and individuals work in their own space. Here’s why digital harassment is more prevalent:
- No Supervision: In an office environment, individuals are on their best behavior because someone is observing. At home, they might feel nobody is observing.
- Casual Communication: Instant messaging and video calls sometimes don’t have the same feeling of formality as office meetings, so individuals might be less professional.
- Power Differences: A boss or more experienced employee can bully others in subtle ways that are more difficult to observe online.
- Personal Space: Video calls can broadcast an individual’s home, which can result in inappropriate remarks about their surroundings or appearance.
Real-Life Effects
A 2022 report by Project Include stated that 1 out of every 4 employees was harassed on the job while remote. These numbers were even greater for women, LGBTQ+, and those of color. They felt isolated, afraid to say something, and not sure that anyone would believe them.
For instance, one woman said a colleague kept messaging her late at night and complimented her appearance during Zoom sessions. When she reported the incidents to Human Resources (HR), they did not take it seriously and instructed her to switch off the camera.
Why Companies Struggle
Most companies were not prepared for this new type of issue. Their policies regarding harassment did not extend to online conduct. Additionally, HR departments generally lack the means to investigate cyber crimes, particularly if the messages are private.
A lot of people also don’t think that digital harassment is important. Since it’s not face-to-face, some do not think it’s serious—even though it can be really disturbing.
How to Make Remote Work Safer
To solve this issue, businesses must get busy and think:
- Edit Rules: Businesses must explicitly state what online behavior is acceptable and what is not.
- Instruct Proper Behavior: Everybody needs to learn to conduct themselves in a decent manner online and how to identify issues early.
- Make Reporting Simple: Individuals must be able to report if they are being harassed, without fear. Anonymous reporting can work.
- Monitor Team Health: Firms should not only monitor work hours or tasks. They should also inquire about how individuals feel and whether they feel safe.
- Use Technology Responsibly: Certain tools can assist in identifying bad behavior through messages. But they need to be used responsibly to respect people’s privacy.
Remote work is here to stay, so businesses need to get serious about digital harassment. They shouldn’t wait for issues to occur. They should be proactive and prevent them from happening.
Harassment is not merely rule-breaking—it’s about making someone feel unsafe and unwanted. Businesses that care about their employees need to make a safe digital environment for everyone.
When the computer is in the office, safety needs to be part of the link.
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