How to Teach Respect in the Workplace: 7 Proven Training Strategies for HR & Team Leaders

Respect at work is taught through the way people communicate, respond to differences, and deal with problems day to day. Training can help by building emotional intelligence, encouraging inclusive behavior, improving communication, supporting managers, and giving employees the confidence to speak up.

Our workplaces nowadays are diverse, not only because of color, race, and religion, but also because of generational diversity and because we have various skills and dis/abilities. With such diversity, teaching respect in the workplace is increasingly important!

A more respectful workforce tends to translate into a happier workplace and one in which employees have the opportunity to thrive. So let’s take a look at some tips for promoting and teaching respect in the workplace.

Below are seven proven training strategies you can use to teach and promote respect across your teams.

1. How can emotional intelligence build respect at work?

One of the most effective ways to immediately improve respect between employees in your workplace, from my experience as a trainer, is to build what is known as ‘Emotional Intelligence’ among staff.

To understand emotional intelligence, let me give you an example. Imagine that an employee has some amazing ideas for your business that may or may not work.

They are too scared, though, to suggest such ideas in a meeting for fear of being mocked by other staff, so they keep quiet.

So in this example, there is no open environment where staff feel free to speak up and to engage with each other. The environment, in other words, does not foster openness and is not one that invites employees to feel comfortable speaking freely.

A manager who has good emotional intelligence is able to pick up on any sign of discomfort that team members have, as they are attuned to other people’s (as well as their own) emotional states.

So, in this case, an emotionally intelligent manager would be able to realize that there is a sense of fear of speaking up in the team and would be proactive in encouraging everyone to contribute their ideas.

Emotional intelligence training aims to teach managers, team leaders, and employees how to create a better environment for all to be confident and respectful.

You can also explore how to apply the Bar-On Emotional Intelligence Model in the workplace to build empathy and trust.

A workplace that encourages positive emotional intelligence, you will find, also helps to foster better respect between employees.

ACTION: Consider the benefits and effectiveness of providing your staff with Emotional Intelligence training.

2. Why does diversity training help teach respect?

Diversity and inclusion training helps employees appreciate differences, challenge bias, and build respect across backgrounds.

The workplace has never been so diverse, and if managed well, there are significant benefits to having a diverse workforce.

Consider, for example, the range of skills, experience, knowledge, and expertise that a diverse workforce can bring to a company.

Courses such as Unconscious Bias, Inclusive Leadership, and Generational Diversity can be especially useful for managers and team leaders to be trained in.

It is sometimes asked: how can we change a bias if it is unconscious, i.e., if we do not realize we are doing it? It’s a fair question.

Unconscious bias training helps us understand how our own biases form and influence decisions. You can read about the different types of unconscious bias that affect workplaces, from ageism to confirmation bias.

These sessions also raise awareness of subtle microaggressions, which can undermine respect and inclusion if left unaddressed.

Ageism these days, for example, is a common form of unconscious bias that exists in many workplaces, where younger workers often see older workers as ‘past it’.

Likewise, managers might often promote employees who fit into that manager’s own personality type or social background. Unconscious bias training helps us to begin to unpick some of these traits that we all have.

In terms of teaching respect in the workplace, unconscious bias training can be a powerful tool in helping employees to learn to better understand and work with their colleagues.

Diversity and inclusion training should also be seriously considered as a part of your Onboarding Training. Onboarding training is a great way to introduce new employees to the workforce culture that you are trying to manifest, and that will include respect in the workplace.

You might also like these 12 diversity and inclusion activities for employees to reinforce respect during onboarding.

ACTION: Consider providing all staff with diversity and inclusion training. As a company, having a happy workforce can greatly improve productivity and reduce staff turnover, and it’s ethically a good thing to do.

3. How does resilience training encourage respect?

Resilience training teaches employees how to handle challenges calmly and support colleagues, which naturally strengthens mutual respect.

Employees can benefit from ‘Resilience training’ by learning to be more:

• able to cooperate with others they work with and/or manage
• creative, innovative, and proactive (and this, in turn, helps inter-employee relationships and interactivity)
• adaptable to change

The fundamentals of Resilience training are designed to teach staff how to endure, recover from, and thrive as a result of adversities. These skills benefit not just the employee undertaking the training but also the company itself. Happier staff equate to more productive staff.

Resilience teaches us not just how to work better and more happily ourselves, but also how to work better with those around us.

ACTION: You might wish to think about teaching your employees how to improve their resilience in the workplace. Both the individual and the company can benefit from more resilient staff. You can find Resilience Training Materials.

For managers, developing emotional resilience also connects closely with emotional intelligence training, an essential skill for sustaining respectful leadership.

4. How does communication training improve respect?

When teams communicate clearly and listen actively, they reduce misunderstandings and increase respect between colleagues.

Developing a coaching mindset can help managers communicate more effectively and build mutual respect. Learn how in our Coaching Employees guide.

Even the smallest issue that was unintentional and innocent at first can, over time, evolve into a big problem that can impact not only the two individuals involved, but also damage team morale for everyone in the team or the whole workplace.

When we talk about communication skills in the workplace, these forms of communication can include:

• Verbal communication – the things we say and how we say them
• Nonverbal communication – the body language we use
• Written communication – such as emails
• Listening – active listening skills are invaluable
• Visual communication – how we use and interpret images, including those from social media, TV, etc.
• Psychological safety – the feeling of being able to speak up and communicate your ideas with anyone without fear of reprisal

When employees are better able to communicate with each other, the number of issues resulting from misunderstandings will decrease. This, in turn, helps to improve respect between employees.

Good communication also reinforces workplace civility, helping employees engage respectfully even during disagreements.

Communication is certainly an area in which employees can improve with the right training.

ACTION: Think about how you can improve communication within the workplace (you can check the interpersonal skills page for training materials).

5. Why should managers lead by example to promote respect?

Managers set the tone for workplace culture. When they model fairness and empathy, employees often mirror those same respectful behaviors.

Many first-time managers move into a leadership role without having any formal management training. In a recent poll reported by SHRM, about 60% of respondents said they had received no training when they moved into their first people-leadership role.

If training budgets are limited, then you might want to give priority, if you are the business owner or HR manager, to providing training for managers. It is the managers who need to instill a climate of respect and trust among employees.

Investing in dedicated manager training on communication, empathy, and conflict resolution helps leaders model the respectful behavior they expect from others.

The issue is that many first-time managers (and also long-term managers) simply have never been trained in how to manage people, as strange as it might sound.

Many managers have risen through the ranks of the company and progressed because of their skills and expertise in a specific work area. These skills, though, are often not people management skills.

6. How can HR create a support network for workplace respect?

Teaching respect in the workplace also comes from facilitating the availability of information and support for your employees.

Ideally, there will be an easy way for employees to seek out guidance and information if they feel that there is an issue, such as if they experience bullying or are excluded unfairly from opportunities.

The goal of these programs is to build an inclusive culture where every employee feels valued, safe, and heard.

For further guidance on creating clear and accessible support procedures, see the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s guidance on preventing workplace harassment.

A great place to provide information is on the company intranet if you have one.

At the very least, make it clear to everyone where they can find support should they ever need it.

Teaching respect in the workplace is also about employee well-being and having a great support network in place.

7. How can collaboration training help build trust and respect?

Collaboration training helps teams understand each other’s strengths, communicate openly, and develop respect through shared goals.

This process also develops team empathy, encouraging members to consider one another’s perspectives before reacting or making decisions.

Giving employees a chance to work together, especially when they work in different departments, can be a wonderful way to generate a feeling of trust, camaraderie, respect, and teamwork.

Not only can collaboration help with productivity as a business, but through collaboration comes trust and greater respect.

You can explore these social-emotional skills for building trust to strengthen teamwork and communication or visit our guides on the Soft Skills Training Hub.

Training on Topics Related to Teaching Respect in the Workplace

To promote respect in the workplace, as discussed earlier in point 5, it is important to ensure that managers, team leaders, and supervisors have the right training to create the right work environment.

These leaders need to lead by example and create a team where trust and respect are the norm.

You can find a list of all training titles by clicking the banner below.