POSH stands for the prevention of sexual harassment at the workplace. In India the term usually points to the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. When an HR lead or founder searches for "POSH training", they usually want to know what the session covers, who should attend and who can run it.
This page answers those three questions in general terms and explains how a workplace can arrange a workshop through Leshya. It is not legal advice. What your organization must do under the Act depends on its size, structure and location, so please confirm your obligations with your legal adviser.
What POSH awareness training usually covers
Content differs from one trainer to another, but most awareness sessions cover a similar ground. What counts as sexual harassment at work, in plain examples, including behaviour that happens online or after hours. How people at work can recognise it, and why a person may stay silent. What a complaint process looks like inside your organization and who to approach. What the Internal Committee is and how it handles a complaint. And how to treat everyone involved fairly while a complaint is being looked at.
A good session also leaves room for questions. People rarely ask in a large room, so many trainers take written questions or run the session in smaller groups.
Who it is for
Employees are the first audience. Everyone should know what is not acceptable and where to take a concern. Managers need more, because people often tell a manager first. A manager should know how to listen, what not to say, and when to pass a concern on without handling it alone.
Members of the Internal Committee need a different session again. They deal with complaints, so they benefit from training on fair process, confidentiality and record keeping. If your committee is new, or its members have changed, ask for a session aimed at them.
Awareness training is not a one time event. New people join, committee members change, and a reminder helps. Leshya workshops can be refreshed when you need them.
POSH sessions for schools and colleges
Schools and colleges employ teachers, lecturers, administrative and support staff, and many run POSH awareness sessions for them in the same way an office does. A staff session can cover what is not acceptable, where a concern goes, and how the institution's committee works. A separate session can be run for the committee itself.
Whether and how the Act applies to your institution, and what your committee must look like, is a question for your legal adviser. Counsellors on Leshya who tell us they run POSH workshops can take sessions for staff on campus or online. Tell us in your inquiry that you are a school or college and how many staff you have.
How a workshop works through Leshya
Leshya lists POSH awareness workshops among the things organizations can ask for. The workshops are run by counsellors already on Leshya who have told us they take on this work. They tell us about their POSH experience themselves. We do not certify it for them, so ask about their background when we scope the workshop with you.
You start with an inquiry. A person at Leshya reads it, a short call follows at a time you pick, and we agree the format, the audience and the fee before anything starts. The format can be online or in person, depending on what the counsellor offers and what suits you. Billing is per workshop run, not per head.
A workshop raises awareness. It does not by itself mean your organization has met its duties under the Act, and we do not claim it does.
An external member for the Internal Committee
Your legal adviser can tell you how the Act's rules on the Internal Committee apply to you, including whether you need an outside member. Some counsellors on Leshya tell us they have served on a workplace committee before. If you need an external member, you can ask us to match you with one. The match is made by Leshya after we hear what you need, not picked from a public list, and the fee is billed per month, agreed upfront.
As with workshops, the counsellor describes their own committee experience. Speak with them, and check that what they say meets what your legal adviser expects.
Counselling alongside awareness
Training often brings things up. A person may realise that something they went through was not acceptable, or a manager may feel unsure how to respond. If your organization wants a place for people to talk to a counsellor, our article on employee assistance programmes explains how counselling can sit alongside training. Individual counselling stays between the person and their counsellor, and Leshya does not tell the organization who attended or what was discussed.
If someone is in distress right now, Tele MANAS, the national helpline, is on 14416.
How to start
Open the For organizations page and choose "Tell us what you need". Say you are a workplace, roughly how many people you have, and that you want POSH awareness training or an external IC member. Our guide on sending an organization inquiry shows each field.
If you're thinking about harming yourself, please talk to someone right now. Tele MANAS is free, confidential and always open: call 14416. You matter.
The counselors here can help with ongoing support, but right now a call is faster.
Common questions
Usually what counts as sexual harassment at work, how to recognise it, how a complaint is raised and handled, what the Internal Committee does, and how to treat everyone fairly. Content differs by trainer.
