>> How to Identify Inappropriate Behavior in the Workplace?

Instructions

Step 1:
Know that jokes about someone's gender, race, cultural background, religion or other personal characteristics are very inappropriate. This is true even if it seems that the person is poking fun at himself, as it could also hurt the feelings of someone else. If this happens to you, try respectfully asking the person to stop making jokes about the particular subject. If the behavior doesn't stop, then you should bring it to your boss's attention.

Step 2:
Remember that touching someone else's body or making comments that are sexual in any way are always inappropriate behaviors. This type of behavior, both in and out of the workplace, could result in a lawsuit. If you are on the receiving end of uninvited touching or sexual comments, report them to your supervisor immediately.

Step 3:
Understand that dating among colleagues is usually inappropriate. However, this often depends on the company. In most cases though, relationships between a manager and an employee are inappropriate because they can cause problems in the workplace.

Step 4:
Consider possible instances of discrimination. Discrimination based on age, gender, disability, national origin, race and religion is always inappropriate in the workplace. An example of this might be when a company only wants to hire men for manual labor jobs because they assume women can't do them because they are women.

Step 5:
Realize that pushing religion in the workplace is inappropriate. For example, if a Christian manager is trying to share his religion with a new employee to make him feel welcome; this could make the employee uncomfortable. He might feel like he can't voice his feelings and discomfort to his manager for fear of losing respect. If you feel that a supervisor or coworker is pushing unwanted information about his religion, you should ask them to stop. If they don't, make a report of inappropriate workplace behavior.

>> How to Solve Workplace Problems?

Instructions

Step 1:
Understand that when people in the workplace communicate with each other, they need to make sure that the other person understands what they are hearing. This way, nobody will be able to say, "Oh, I misunderstood" or "Well, no one told me that." When interacting with others, it is often helpful to repeat the key points that you want them to remember.

Step 2:
Remember that everyone should always be direct and truthful. Don't imply or exaggerate anything you say; instead be respectful, truthful and direct so that you aren't misunderstood.

Step 3:
Have company meetings during which everyone discusses the points made in Steps 1 and 2. The first part of solving workplace problems is prevention--eliminate problems before they begin. Designate a supervisor or supervisors who are responsible for helping people solve problems in the workplace. Next, make it clear that at any time an employee is having a problem, they can visit with these people for help.

Step 4:
Solve problems among employees when they arise. First, identify the problem and the facts surrounding it. Second, identify the size and importance of the problem. This might be something with an easy solution. On the other hand, it may be a recurring problem that needs quite a bit of time and attention to solve.

Step 5:
Identify the best way to solve the problem. Discuss acceptable solutions to the problems and decide which one is the best. Next, determine the actions needed to reach that solution. You may need to have further meetings, mediation between employees or, in extreme situations, legal action.

>> Companies keep an eye on workers' Internet use

A large percentage of companies are monitoring Internet use by workers, but many still allow at least some personal use of the Web.

• Blue Bell Creameries in Brenham, Texas, asks employees to limit the amount of time that they spend at online shopping sites and blocks access to some specific Web locations.
  
  "It's understood that work time is work time," says Bill Weiss, a spokesman with Blue Bell, which has 2,800 employees. He says the policy helps limit employees from accessing sites that can contain spyware.
  
  
• General Motors allows employees to use the Web for work and personal use but blocks sites that are considered inappropriate.
  
  "We expect GM employees to apply good judgment when accessing the Internet and to keep focused on the task at hand," says Linda McGill, director of communications for information systems and services at GM. "We reserve the right to block certain sites for a variety of reasons."
  
  
• In the federal government, agencies are required to establish an Internet-use policy. Limited personal use of the Web is permitted.
  
  But some employers are taking tougher stances. The city of Pittsburgh is rolling out a policy that will eventually limit almost all of the city's 1,300 employees to 30 minutes a day on the Internet. Currently the policy applies to public works employees. The restriction is handled through a Web-filtering program that tracks the amount of time employees spend online.
  
  "It's a best practice for the taxpayers of Pittsburgh," says Dick Skrinjar, of the mayor's office. "We want the highest level of service. It makes us more effective and productive."
  
  Three-quarters of companies monitor employees' website connections in large part due to concern about inappropriate Internet surfing, according to a 2005 survey by the American Management Association (AMA). More than half retain and review messages. Most also have policies regarding personal e-mail use, and more than a quarter have fired workers for misusing the Internet. Thirty-six percent track content, keystrokes and time spent at the keyboard.
  
  Sixty-five percent of companies use software to block certain websites, a 27% increase since 2001, according to the AMA.
  
  Eighty-seven percent of employees surf non-work-related websites while at work, according to a survey by Vault.com. More than half engage in personal website surfing every day.
  
  Employers realize the need to monitor to avoid abuse, says Wally Bock, of Greensborough, N.C, author of the soon-to-be-released Performance Talk, which deals with performance issues. But smart companies, he says, are handling those who abuse the Internet on a one-on-one basis. Limiting all personal use, he says, goes too far.
  
  

>> Hangovers - A Pain in the Workplace

Excessive drinking by employees cost businesses and industries worldwide billions of dollars each year in absenteeism and lost productivity, but it is not the heavy drinkers or alcoholics who are mostly responsible.

New research shows that it is the light or light-to-moderate drinkers who cause the most problems. More than half of all alcohol-related problems in the workplace are caused by light drinkers, and 87 percent by light-to-moderate drinkers.

The problems are mostly due to hangovers.

In the workplace, the greatest cost incurred by alcohol is the decreased productivity of affected employees as a result of hangover-related absenteeism and poor job performance, Wiese says.

In Finland, which has a population of 5 million persons, more than 1 million workdays are lost each year because of hangover. Light-to-moderate users of alcohol -- 0 to 3 drinks per day for men and 0 to 1 drink per day for women -- account for most of the lost-work costs because they make up most of the work force.

The primary morbidity that affects light-to-moderate drinkers is the hangover, not the long-term consequences of alcohol abuse, such as cirrhosis and cardiomyopathy. Chronic alcoholism is responsible for only a small proportion of the total societal cost of alcohol use, the report said.

Researchers also found that people with hangovers posed a danger to themselves and others long after their blood alcohol levels had returned to normal, suggesting that hangovers could be more insidious than actual inebriation.

"Even if you don't feel severely hungover, your cognitive abilities, concentration and technical skills may actually be diminished," Wiese said. "With inebriation, you're at least more aware of it perhaps more than with a hangover."