Employment Harm from Disclosure of Investigations of Workplace Misconduct and Sexual Harassment

Abstract

Internal investigations into allegations of workplace misconduct are undertaken on a confidential basis. But confidentiality cannot be assured. Investigated employees may be revealed by the investigation, including by word of mouth and by disclosure requirements to future potential employers. Based on an experiment fielded on a large nationally representative sample, this study provides the first evidence of direct employment harm to an employee investigated for workplace misconduct or sexual harassment. Subjects express considerable opposition to a callback of applicants who were investigated for workplace misconduct, even when the investigation did not find misconduct. The findings add to the evidence documenting that any association with stigma harms employment prospects.

Keywords: internal investigations, workplace misconduct, sexual harassment, pre-employment disclosures, hiring outcomes, allegations

JEL Classification: J01, J08, K00