What not to do: (In)justice enactment in handling sexual harassment complaints.

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to explore and identify how Human Resource Professionals (HRPs) act unfairly and unjustly in handling sexual harassment complaints, by applying the theory of organisational justice. Employing qualitative research methodology, 35 HRPs from 30 companies were interviewed to gather information. The findings indicated the numerous ways procedural, distributive and interactional injustices take place in handling sexual harassment complaints. It is expected that the identification of such unfair and unjust practices will point towards the pitfalls that HRPs knowingly or unknowingly encounter, helping them to avoid them and thereby handle sexual harassment complaints fairly. This will lead to better well-being of organisations and its stakeholders.