Free · Certificate included
Workplace Harassment Prevention
Build a respectful environment free of harassment for staff and volunteers.
What you’ll learn
- Recognize the behaviors and protected characteristics that make conduct unlawful harassment
- Tell the difference between a hostile work environment and quid pro quo harassment
- Understand how harassment standards reach volunteer programs, not just paid staff
- Step in safely as a bystander and report through the right channels
- Know your protection from retaliation and your organization’s duty of reasonable care
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Create a free account →Course outline
- 1
What harassment actually is
In everyday speech, "harassment" gets used for any behavior we find rude or unfair.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 2
Two shapes: hostile environment vs. quid pro quo
Harassment generally takes one of two legal shapes.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 3
How this reaches volunteer programs
Many leaders assume harassment law is purely an "employee" issue.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 4
The scale of the problem
Harassment isn’t a rare edge case — it’s one of the most common workplace problems, and most of it never gets reported.
4 min Quiz - 5
Bystander intervention: the 4 Ds
You don’t have to be the target — or a manager — to make harassment stop.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 6
Reporting, retaliation & the org’s duty
Prevention and bystander action go a long way, but a serious organization also needs a reliable way to report harassment and a hard rule against punishing anyone…
6 min Quiz Interactive - 7
Building a culture of respect
Policies and reporting lines are the floor.
4 min Interactive
Sources & further reading
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace (April 29, 2024)
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — Harassment overview — federal anti-harassment laws
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — Enforcement and Litigation Statistics (FY 2024)
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — Promising Practices for Preventing Harassment
- Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) — How to Prevent Workplace Harassment
VolunteerBadge Academy courses are provided free for general educational and informational purposes only. Every course is researched from reputable, authoritative sources (cited on the course), but VolunteerBadge and ScreenForge Labs, LLC make no representations or warranties of any kind — express or implied — as to the accuracy, completeness, currentness, reliability, or suitability of the content for any purpose. Content may contain errors or omissions and may become outdated, and laws, regulations, standards, and best practices vary by jurisdiction and change over time. This material is not legal, medical, mental-health, clinical, financial, safety-certification, or other professional advice, and completing a course or earning a certificate creates no professional relationship, license, accreditation, or endorsement and is not a substitute for training, certification, supervision, or policies required by law, your organization, your insurer, or a licensing body. Always follow your organization's own policies and applicable law, use your own judgment, and consult a qualified professional (such as an attorney, licensed clinician, or medical provider) about your specific situation. In an emergency, call 911 (or, for a mental-health crisis, 988). To the fullest extent permitted by law, VolunteerBadge and ScreenForge Labs, LLC disclaim all liability for any loss or harm arising from reliance on this content or participation in any course.