Q. "An employee came to us with a harassment complaint but doesn't want us to investigate. Do we still need to?"
Answer:
Yes, you should still investigate the complaint. Not investigating could expose you to legal risk if more employees come forward with complaints, if the employee later takes their complaint to a state or federal agency, or if the harasser continues to harass.
Failing to act can also encourage harassing behavior and slow or stop the creation of a safe and inclusive culture.
Let the employee who made the complaint know that you, as the employer, need to ensure a safe work environment free from harassment and must investigate all situations brought to your attention. Assure the employee their name will be kept out of the investigation as much as possible and retaliation won’t be tolerated.
If you think employees might be deterred from submitting valid complaints due to potential repercussions, consider providing a way for them to report issues anonymously.