Ethics and Sexual Harassment Prevention: Why Training Matters

Elizabeth Pittelkow Kittner CFO, GigaOm
Exploring Ethics in Business & Finance Today

You are likely already aware that this year is a reporting year and that all CPAs licensed in Illinois must log 120 CPE hours within the three-year renewal period ending Sept. 30, 2021. These CPE hours must include one annual hour of sexual harassment prevention training and four hours of ethics training. However, these trainings should be more than an item to check off your renewal to-do list.

Treating people with respect and making ethical decisions are moral imperatives and the foundation of your personal and professional reputation. Failing in either of these areas puts your and your organization’s good names at risk and makes you and your organization susceptible to financial consequences. In order to maintain a healthy professional culture and build an excellent reputation, take these training requirements seriously and think through the implications of your workplace policies and personal actions regarding sexual harassment prevention and ethical decision-making.

Sexual harassment is a corrosive element in an organization’s culture and takes an emotional toll on victims and bystanders. To prevent sexual harassment, you should ensure you and your team are taking sexual harassment prevention training seriously and promoting a positive and communicative workplace culture with mechanisms for people to report issues anonymously and without fear of retaliation. Sexual harassment in the workplace can cause people to leave an organization, either driven out by direct harassment or dismayed by a company culture that allows it. The Society for Human Resources Management estimates that the cost of an employee leaving is roughly a third of their annual earnings, with most of the cost stemming from the loss in productivity and knowledge, the resources needed to provide temporary labor, and the time needed to recruit and train a replacement. Preventing sexual harassment is the right thing to do, and it can pay off with higher retention rates, saved expenses, and a more positive workplace environment.

Ethical lapses have similar costs, both in cultural deterioration and the loss of staff. Much like sexual harassment prevention, you should ensure that employees have ways to report potential fraud anonymously and without fear of retaliation. The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) reports that a typical fraud case lasts 14 months before detection and costs an organization an average of $8,300 per month. Research shows that effective fraud reporting mechanisms are a key indicator of organizations being able to identify and stop fraud quickly.

Sexual harassment and fraud have long existed within the profession and the numbers prove that they happen more often than we might think. In 2018, Accounting Today reported on research showing that sexual harassment in particular is more common in professional workplaces than we would like to believe. In fact, 34 percent of the women in accounting surveyed said they had faced sexual harassment themselves, and 39 percent said they were aware that someone else had been harassed. On the fraud front, the ACFE continually reports on instances of fraud, showing both how frequent they are and the circumstances surrounding fraudulent behavior.

The unique circumstances created by COVID-19 have likely increased instances of both sexual harassment and fraud. Though most interactions are now digital, they are also more likely to be one-on-one, and perpetrators may feel their harassment will go undetected without witnesses. Fraud has risen during the pandemic, especially cybercrimes and COVID-19 scams, and employees often feel increased financial pressure and heightened pressure to perform.

The goals of both sexual harassment prevention training and ethics training should not be to simply check those items off your list. These training sessions should help define what fraud and sexual harassment look like, highlight the importance of an organizational culture that cares about people and making ethical choices, and reduce the instances of sexual harassment and unethical behavior.

You can find many providers of both sexual harassment prevention training and ethics courses, but make sure that the sessions you choose qualify for continuing professional education as approved by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. The Illinois CPA Society offers on-demand courses for both the sexual harassment training and ethics requirements at www.icpas.org/ education/programs/ondemand.

Be a part of the solution by inspiring and encouraging appropriate and ethical behavior within your organization and within the profession as a whole. We are a profession built on public trust, and we need to continue to sustain and improve our reputation by showing integrity in our work and interpersonal interactions. By understanding why these training sessions matter, you can help hold yourself, your organization, and the profession to a higher standard.