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Anti-bullying & Harassment Training

In many organisations, harassment is treated as a clear-cut issue: someone behaves inappropriately, someone else is harmed, and corrective action follows. But real-life scenarios are rarely this straightforward. One of the most complex and often overlooked aspects of workplace harassment is this: some people who engage in harassing behaviours genuinely do not recognise what they are doing. That does not excuse the harm, but it radically changes how we need to think about prevention. Anti-bullying & harassment training designed with this complexity in mind is key to creating safer workplaces.

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When Touch Is Part of the Job: Navigating Consent in Physical Professions

In many workplaces, physical contact is rare and easily avoided. But for professionals in massage therapy, performing arts, healthcare, and physical fitness, touch is not just part of the job—it is the job. In these environments, the line between professional contact and personal space can blur, making clear communication, trust, and boundary-setting absolutely vital.

When roles involve close physical proximity, the conversation around consent takes on an added layer of importance. It is not enough to assume that touch is understood as part of the work. Without thoughtful, ongoing consent practices, even routine tasks can lead to discomfort, misinterpretation, or, in worst-case scenarios, harassment.

This blog explores how consent can be embedded in physically interactive roles, where power dynamics, expectations, and workplace norms often complicate what should be a simple agreement: “May I?”

The Unique Risk Landscape of Physical Professions

Professions that rely on touch come with inherent risks. In healthcare settings, physical examinations are necessary for treatment but can be uncomfortable for patients if handled insensitively. Massage therapists work directly on the body and must always maintain a therapeutic, not personal, dynamic. Dancers or actors may be asked to rehearse scenes that require intimate or choreographed contact. Fitness trainers might need to correct form through brief physical guidance.

What these roles have in common is an expectation of touch that must be continuously negotiated. Unlike most office environments, where contact is incidental, touch here is functional—yet still deeply personal. When power dynamics enter the picture, such as client versus practitioner, director versus actor, or doctor versus patient, the potential for misunderstanding or harm increases.

Why ‘Implied Consent’ Isn’t Enough

In physical professions, there is often an unspoken assumption: “If you are here, you consent.” But this logic is flawed. Consent must be specific, active, and revocable at any point.

Just because someone has agreed to a massage does not mean they have forfeited the right to speak up if they feel uneasy. A dancer may sign on for a role but later realise a particular lift or hold feels invasive. Patients might accept a medical examination but still feel powerless if communication is poor.

Implied or blanket consent removes individual agency and replaces it with assumption. That is risky for everyone involved. Professionals must adopt a mindset of ongoing, informed, and respectful consent. This is not just about avoiding complaints or liabilities—it is about honouring human dignity and building professional trust.

Everyday Examples of Boundary Confusion • A massage therapist continues a session despite a client tensing or shifting away, assuming they are just relaxing slowly • An actor is asked to repeat an intimate scene without a prior conversation, even as discomfort becomes visible during rehearsal • A physiotherapist does not verbally explain a technique before applying pressure to a sensitive area

These are not extreme cases of misconduct, but they are breaches of consent. Repeated experiences like these contribute to workplace discomfort, erode trust, and can eventually lead to formal reports. Even when the intent is professional, the experience matters more.

Consent as a Cultural Standard, Not a Legal Checkbox

Training around consent is often framed as a legal requirement, especially in healthcare. But relying on checklists, forms, or policy documents alone creates a false sense of security.

Real consent culture shows up in daily habits—how professionals speak, interpret non-verbal cues, invite questions, and respond to hesitation.

This means: • Asking before initiating any contact, no matter how routine it may seem • Explaining actions and allowing time for clarification • Being attentive to changes in tone, posture, or facial expression • Repeating the invitation to speak up, even midway through an interaction

Actual consent practices are relational, not transactional. They are built on trust, not assumption.

The Role of Institutions and Employers

Organisations that employ workers in touch-based roles—spas, hospitals, theatre companies, gyms—must actively support a consent-forward environment. That starts with policies, but must also include training, leadership, and practical reporting options.

A robust approach might include: • Clear protocols for gaining and documenting consent in context • Specialist training on power dynamics and bodily autonomy • Peer observation or mentorship for learning consent practices in action • Accessible channels for feedback that do not escalate pressure • Zero tolerance for any retaliation when boundaries are asserted

Consent should not be treated as an individual responsibility alone. It requires structural support to thrive.

Learning from the Performing Arts: A Shift in Culture

Theatre and film have introduced roles like intimacy coordinators—professionals trained to choreograph physical scenes while protecting actors’ boundaries. This shift acknowledges that creative work can still be safe work.

Scenes involving touch are now blocked with the same attention to consent as physical stunts or fight choreography.

This model can inspire other professions: anticipate sensitive moments, plan them deliberately, and ensure mutual agreement. By removing ambiguity, workplaces reduce harm without compromising their goals.

Trauma-Informed Touch: An Added Consideration

For many people, touch can trigger trauma, particularly if they have experienced boundary violations in the past. This is especially relevant in healthcare, mental health, or physical therapy settings.

Trauma-informed care emphasises choice, transparency, and control. In practice, that might look like: • Asking, “Would it be okay if I placed my hand here to help?” instead of assuming • Giving verbal cues before each movement • Offering the option to pause or stop at any time, with no explanation required • Following up afterward to ensure the experience felt safe

These small changes make a significant difference. They help people feel in control of their bodies, even during essential interventions.

Creating a Consent-Centred Future

Professions involving touch will always carry more risk than those that do not. With risk comes responsibility. Organisations and individuals must foster environments where touch is respectful, safe, and clearly agreed upon.

Whether it is a posture adjustment in a gym class or a choreographed theatre scene, the foundation should be mutual understanding.

When people feel in control of how and when their bodies are accessed, they feel seen, respected, and safe.

FAQs

Can consent be implied in physical jobs like massage or physiotherapy?

No. While touch may be expected in these roles, consent must still be specific, informed, and ongoing. Professionals should explain each step and confirm comfort frequently.

What is the risk if consent is not clear in touch-based professions?

Even unintentional oversteps can cause distress, harm relationships, and result in formal complaints. This undermines trust and can expose organisations to legal or reputational risk.

How can teams ensure that a culture of consent becomes standard practice?

Offer regular training, model clear and respectful language, establish anonymous feedback systems, and review all touch-based practices through a trauma-informed lens.

© Tell Jane

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Tell Jane

When harassment training is designed with neurodivergent learners in mind, the benefits extend across the organisation. Clarity improves. Empathy deepens. Reporting becomes safer. Inclusion becomes real, not just policy-driven. A respectful workplace starts when every employee, regardless of how they think or learn, feels seen, supported, and safe. That is not a luxury. It is the baseline. Tell Jane believes that true inclusion begins with understanding, and delivers training that reflects that.

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Tell Jane

Sexual harassment training is not just about preventing lawsuits. It is about building a culture where everyone can thrive. That requires care, nuance, and an understanding that real learning happens when people are engaged, not just informed. Tell Jane specialises in delivering training that prioritises relevance, reflection, and responsibility, ensuring organisations go beyond simply ticking a box. With the right approach, training can change more than knowledge. It can shift behaviour, attitudes, and long-term outcomes.

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Tell Jane

For many employees, picking up the phone to report harassment is one of the most vulnerable steps they’ll ever take. Whether it’s an internal hotline or a third-party service, the experience of making that call, or choosing not to, depends entirely on how that helpline is designed, staffed, and followed up. If reporting channels don’t feel safe, accessible, and trustworthy, they won’t be used. And when they aren’t used, harassment persists in silence. At Tell Jane, we understand that creating a trustworthy reporting system isn’t just about having a phone line—it’s about building a culture of safety, confidentiality, and action.

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Is Your Anti-Harassment Training Causing More Harm Than Good

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Gendered Expectations and Harassment When ‘Fitting In’ Means Being Silent

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Harassment by Policy: When Workplace Rules Enable Abuse

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When Harassment Comes from the Top: Navigating Abuse of Authority

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Customising sexual harassment training isn’t about making it more complicated—it’s about making it effective. By tailoring content to match responsibilities, environment, and lived experience, organisations show they take prevention seriously, not just legally, practically, and culturally. Explores how to build role-aware, inclusive sexual harassment prevention training that actually resonates—and sticks.

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In many workplaces, success isn’t just about skill or performance—it’s also about blending in. But the unspoken rules of fitting in often reflect narrow, gendered expectations that put added pressure on employees to accept, absorb, or ignore inappropriate behaviour. For many, especially women and those with marginalised gender identities, staying silent becomes a survival strategy. That’s why Tell Jane provides expert training and guidance to help organisations break this cycle and build cultures where everyone can thrive authentically.

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Anti-bullying & Harassment Training

Well-written, fairly applied policies are crucial for building a respectful workplace. However, without consistent support like Anti-bullying & Harassment Training, even the best policies can fall short. These rules must be living tools—revisited, tested, and adjusted as culture shifts. When enforced blindly or used to reinforce power, they can do lasting damage.

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Preventing Disability Discrimination

For many employees with disabilities, navigating the workplace comes with a quiet, relentless calculation—how to stay safe, be heard, and assert boundaries without drawing unwanted attention. Harassment against disabled staff often remains invisible to those in charge, not because it isn’t happening, but because systems weren’t built to recognise or respond to it. At Tell Jane, we believe that preventing disability discrimination starts with building inclusive, responsive workplace cultures—ones that listen, adapt, and take action when disabled employees raise concerns.

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Whistleblower Burnout: Supporting Employees Who Speak Up

Speaking up isn’t easy. For many whistleblowers, the decision to report harassment, misconduct, or unethical behaviour is made after sleepless nights, intense self-doubt, and quiet calculations about the potential fallout. While much attention is given to what happens during an investigation, far less is said about what comes after—when the dust settles but the emotional weight lingers.

Whistleblowers often carry the burden alone. Even in workplaces that promise non-retaliation, subtle shifts in treatment, strained peer relationships, and lingering mistrust can lead to long-term stress, isolation, and in some cases, career derailment. Without active, ongoing support, these employees may burn out—not because of the issue they raised, but because of how they were treated for raising it.

This blog explores the emotional toll of whistleblowing, the real risks involved, and how employers can build cultures that protect—not punish—those who choose to speak.

The Cost of Doing the Right Thing

Whistleblowing is often framed as a courageous act—and it is. But it’s also an emotionally taxing one. Most people who report misconduct aren’t trying to make headlines or take down a system. They simply want the harm to stop. Yet, in doing so, they often face unexpected fallout.

Common experiences include:

• Emotional exhaustion – The process of reporting, being interviewed, waiting for outcomes, and then re-entering the same workplace environment is draining, especially when trust is already broken.

• Social isolation – Colleagues may distance themselves from whistleblowers, either to avoid association or because they don’t know how to respond.

• Career stagnation – Some employees are passed over for promotion or removed from projects under the guise of ‘fit’ or ‘team cohesion.’

• Loss of motivation – When speaking up doesn’t seem to lead to meaningful change—or leads to backlash—many disengage entirely.

• Anxiety and hyper-vigilance – Even after an investigation is closed, whistleblowers may feel the need to constantly self-monitor or watch their back.

These symptoms mirror those seen in trauma or chronic stress, and they require more than a one-time debrief to address.

Why Burnout Is So Common Among Whistleblowers

Whistleblower burnout isn’t simply about what happened—it’s about how it’s handled.

Several factors contribute to post-report fatigue:

1. Lack of closure

Often, investigations conclude with minimal transparency. The reporter may never learn what actions were taken or whether the issue was fully addressed.

2. Workplace inaction or minimisation

If the culture around them stays the same—or if the accused remains in a position of power—whistleblowers can feel that their effort made no difference.

3. Subtle forms of retaliation

Even when formal punishment is avoided, whistleblowers may experience exclusion from meetings, coldness from colleagues, or vague negative performance feedback.

4. Forced silence

Whistleblowers are often bound by confidentiality agreements or simply told to “move on.” This can create a sense of isolation and bottled-up frustration.

5. Loss of professional identity

If the issue reported involved someone in leadership or a project they cared about, whistleblowers can feel they’ve been forced to choose between their ethics and their career.

How Employers Can Protect and Support Whistleblowers

It’s not enough to have a reporting policy. Organisations must also have a recovery plan—for the whistleblower and for the workplace. Protecting those who speak up should be an ongoing priority, not a postscript.

1. Provide Dedicated Support Immediately and Ongoing

Offer access to external counselling, not just in the moment of crisis but for months afterward.

Assign a neutral contact person (not the direct manager) who checks in regularly and listens without agenda.

Acknowledge the courage it took to speak up—publicly where appropriate, or privately where discretion is preferred.

2. Ensure Clear and Fair Communication

Keep whistleblowers informed throughout the process. Share timelines, progress, and outcomes where possible.

If confidentiality limits what can be shared, explain that—don’t leave silence.

Outline what protections are in place and how they’ll be enforced.

3. Actively Monitor for Retaliation

Look beyond formal complaints. Pay attention to sudden shifts in team dynamics, feedback patterns, or social exclusion.

Encourage peers and managers to support rather than isolate, and offer training on how to do so respectfully.

4. Reinforce Whistleblower Protections in Policy and Practice

Include anti-retaliation clauses in all HR policies and make them highly visible.

Make clear that retaliation—no matter how minor—will result in serious consequences.

Ensure whistleblowers can raise concerns about backlash without triggering a second full investigation.

5. Support Career Continuity

Offer opportunities for redeployment or reengagement on new teams if needed.

Create development plans that reinforce the whistleblower’s value and progression, so they’re not sidelined.

Publicly affirm (with their consent) that reporting concerns does not limit future opportunities.

Building Cultures That Celebrate Accountability

One of the most powerful ways to prevent whistleblower burnout is to shift how organisations see whistleblowing itself. Instead of treating it as a disruption, treat it as a contribution—evidence that your systems work and that people trust them enough to use them.

Celebrate values like honesty, safety, and mutual accountability.

Highlight stories (with permission) where speaking up led to positive change.

Train managers to thank and support those who raise concerns, rather than viewing them as liabilities.

When employees see whistleblowers treated with respect—not suspicion—they’re more likely to raise issues early, preventing harm before it escalates.

FAQs

Is whistleblower burnout preventable?

Yes—with proactive, sustained support and a workplace culture that values accountability over comfort, burnout can be reduced significantly.

What if the whistleblower asks to transfer or leave?

Always offer options without pressuring them. Some may need a fresh start; others want to stay. The key is giving them agency and respect.

Can peer support help?

Absolutely. Setting up confidential, peer-led support spaces or connecting whistleblowers (when appropriate) with others who’ve spoken up in the past can provide vital reassurance and solidarity. © Tell Jane

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Walls, Windows, and Watchfulness How Office Layout Shapes Workplace Safety

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Why Freelancers Need Harassment Protection Too

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Harassment at Industry Events: Who’s Accountable Outside the Office