Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

 

Employees should report sexual harassment without fear of retaliation from the perpetrator or their boss in a workplace.

Sexual harassment happens in a workplace more often than you may think. According to inspired learning, 63% did not file a complaint, and 79% of men kept issues to themselves. Some more statistics are nearly 3 in 4 sexual harassment claims in the workplace go unreported, 55% of victims experience retaliation after speaking up or making a claim, and 39% of employees aren’t confident their issues will be addressed, and 46% fear retaliation.

 

What is Sexual Harassment?

According to national partnership

• ·        One type is conduct that a worker is forced to endure as a condition of employment. This form of harassment, called “quid pro quo” (or “this for that”), may involve a supervisor pressuring or coercing a subordinate to engage in sexual acts in return for continued employment, a promotion, favorable hours or shifts, time off or a positive review.
• ·      The other occurs when conduct is intentional, recurring, severe and/or pervasive and impacts one’s ability to perform their job. This is called a “hostile work environment.” Examples include a colleague making offensive jokes, comments, or insults, or sharing offensive images.

 

What You Can Do If You Witness Workplace Sexual Harassment

According to national partnership this is what you can do if you witness or go through sexual harassment.

 

• ·        Direct: If you feel that directly addressing harassment is safe and may be effective, you can confront the harasser and call out the behavior in the moment. Let them know you find their behavior inappropriate, intimidating, or hostile, and ask them to stop. 

• ·          Distract: You can stop an incident by simply interrupting it. Rather than focusing on the aggressor or action, this subtler intervention allows you to engage the person being targeted through a distraction – ask a question, start an unrelated conversation, physically interrupt the incident, or find a reason to call the person out of that space.

• ·        Delegate: Find an appropriate third party to intervene, such as a supervisor, human resources officer, security officer or another colleague.

• ·        Delay: If you aren’t able or choose not to intervene in the moment, you can still support the person who has been harassed by following up with them afterwards. You can offer acknowledgement and empathy, and can ask whether they need additional support, resources, or documentation of the incident. 

• ·        Document: Depending on the circumstances and whether other interventions are more urgent, it may be most helpful to document what you are witnessing. If you can record an incident or jot down details, be sure to follow up with the targeted individual.

Report the harassment.

People who experience harassment and bystanders who witness it have the right to report it. Remember that the individual who experiences harassment should ultimately decide whether they want the incident to be reported, and they may have valid reasons for not wanting to act – such as fear of retaliation. You can support an individual who decides to report an incident by helping them navigate the process and serving as a witness. 

• Read your employer’s policy on harassment and follow it to report an incident. If your employer does not have a policy, consider reporting harassment to a trusted supervisor or human resources specialist. Save all written communications and take notes on all conversations.

• ·        Contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or your local EEOC field office to learn more about harassment and your rights.  You can submit a charge of harassment online or in person within 180 days of when the harassment occurs (and you don’t need a lawyer to do so).

• ·        Bystanders – as well as people who directly experience harassment – who report unlawful harassment to their employer, file a charge with the EEOC, testify, assist or participate in an investigation of harassment are protected from workplace retaliation by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and cannot be retaliated against by their employers.