New NLRB Decision Eases Restrictions on Keeping Harassment Investigations Confidential

Between 2005 and 2015, the restaurant and hospitality industry had the highest percentage (14 percent) of sexual harassment filings received by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”),[1] in which the complainant's industry was specified.[2] The real percentage may well be higher, as more than half of the EEOC's sexual harassment filings during that time did not specify the complainant's industry.

In the years since the #MeToo movement catapulted workplace sexual harassment into the national spotlight, employers across all industries have been encouraged to implement or update sexual harassment policies, including reporting procedures and investigation practices. When an employer receives a complaint, it should promptly begin an investigation into the alleged conduct to determine whether the complaint is justified. A thorough investigation serves several purposes: It can allow the employer to stop harassment and properly discipline a harasser, prepare the…