Making POSH Mechanisms Transparent and Accessible: From Compliance to Confidence
Mr. Milin Dholakia, COO at Beyond Key, explains why workplace safety depends on employee trust, transparency, and accountability, and why organizations must move beyond mere POSH compliance to create truly safe and inclusive workplaces.
This article has been contributed by Mr Milin Dholakia, COO at Beyond Key.
The growing focus on workplace ethics and employee well-being is driving the global governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) market, which is projected to expand at a 12-14% CAGR through 2030. As organizations move beyond regulatory compliance, transparency, accountability, and employee trust are emerging as the key pillars of workplace safety.
Almost every organization today can claim that they are compliant with POSH rules. They have policies, committees, training programs. But all of these things do not guarantee that your workplace is a safe place for everyone.
In many places, there are still concerns from workers, especially women, about whether it is worth filing a report. This is not about the lack of systems or procedures; it is about the lack of trust in these systems. The gap between being compliant and having a safe workplace exists in transparency, access, and accountability.
When Compliance Exists But Confidence Does Not
One of the most common problems today in creating a safe environment in the workplace is that there is a discrepancy between theoretical documents and practice. Many organizations can proudly boast about their POSH system, but their employees have doubts about its practical application.
Employees have questions but do not dare to ask them aloud:
- Is my case confidential?
- Does it affect my career advancement?
- Can upper management be penalized in case of involvement?
The above issues are not abstract but stem from work culture, previous experience, and the story being told about misconduct through the employee grapevine. In the absence of transparency, no matter how stringent and comprehensive the policy, its effectiveness may wane.
Transparency does not refer to disclosure of proprietary data. Transparency involves the communication of the process, the safety measures put in place, and the repercussions for those who break the rules. When an individual understands the reporting process and how it operates, he or she becomes more confident and less hesitant to come forward.
Visibility Trumps Documentation
Simply having the policy in an intranet portal does not make it accessible. What counts is making sure that employees will be able to locate needed information without difficulty.
In many organizations today, there is usually an effective reporting mechanism, but it may lack visibility. Employees do not always know which individual to speak to or where to seek answers in case of problems. Lack of visibility leads to hesitance to use the reporting procedure.
Organizations should make sure that the reporting mechanism is visible on multiple mediums, including employee portals, onboarding resources, bulletin boards, and internal communication forums. Accessibility also requires digital inclusion.
The Credibility of ICCs Defines the System
The Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) is the foundation of the POSH framework. However, the reliability of the committee does not lie in its establishment but in its readiness and impartiality.
All too often, the appointment to the ICC becomes a formality rather than a specialist task. The work with workplace harassment complaints cannot be limited merely to knowledge of the law. The ICC member needs to demonstrate empathy, confidentiality, investigative competence, and skills in handling sensitive situations.
Periodic training is an integral part of the process, yet, it should not be restricted to theoretical information only. Role-playing exercises, mock investigations, and lectures by outside experts assist in gaining practical experience. Otherwise, the best-intentioned committee will still face difficulties in managing the complaints efficiently.
It is the employees themselves who evaluate the reliability of the process by the professionalism shown while dealing with the complaints. Just one poorly conducted complaint can undermine the trust in the entire system.
Overcoming the Threat of Retaliation
Despite numerous preventive measures, fear continues to be a formidable barrier to reporting workplace harassment. Most employees are unwilling to report for fear of some form of retaliation, which can be very subtle.
Anti-retaliation policies need to be backed by concrete actions. Employees need to see retaliation being punished. Management needs to ensure that reporting problems is a way to take responsibility and not cause a disturbance.
A psychologically safe workplace environment does not exist because of any kind of statement, it exists because of behaviors practiced at all management levels.
Data Transparency Establishes Organizational Integrity
Confidentiality often makes it difficult for organizations to release data on their harassment cases. But withholding all kinds of information could breed suspicion. Anonymized annual reports of complaints and how many have been resolved or still pending can help ease this problem. Transparency can assure employees that nothing will be swept under the rug.
Data transparency allows leaders to recognize and deal with recurring patterns within a specific department. This would increase the overall safety of workplaces. It is important to understand that transparency here doesn't mean identifying anyone.
Training Should Be Continuous, Not Annual
Many companies provide POSH training annually for complying with statutory requirements. However, while this may suffice to meet statutory standards, it hardly helps in creating sustainable awareness. Behavior at work gets molded based on consistency and repetition. Frequent, shorter training sessions are likely to prove effective compared to one long annual session.
Short training sessions can include actual cases, scenario-based discussions, and discussion led by leadership. It is essential to train the managers separately because they often become the first person to approach when there are concerns at work. Their response can determine whether employees decide to report an issue or not.
Regular training helps maintain awareness and shared ownership of workplace safety.
Leadership Engagement Determines Success
It is impossible to implement any POSH program effectively without the participation of leaders. Open endorsement by leadership adds credibility to policies and processes. Employees notice the attitude of leaders towards issues. Inactivity and silence by leaders in face of such problems might signal their lack of concern.
Engagement by leaders also facilitates resource mobilization since training, consultation, and awareness-building need considerable funds. Without leadership support, these efforts may become insignificant.
For workplace safety to acquire cultural significance, it needs attention and engagement from leaders.
The Way Forward: Building Systems Employees Trust
POSH systems that are open and accessible are not systems based on creating more policies. They are systems that employees will be comfortable enough using.
- Companies must first ask themselves some hard questions:
- Are employees clear about how to report an issue?
- Do they believe that their complaints will be handled with integrity?
- Can they trust that raising concerns won’t have negative repercussions?
These are the questions which determine the effectiveness of any POS system.
The future of safety in the workplace will not be determined by the committees created or the policies developed. It will be determined by the confidence employees have in coming forward.
Sanvi Barjatya
