Identifying Workplace Sexual Harassment
Identifying Workplace Sexual Harassment
Identifying Workplace Sexual Harassment
Everything from "locker room" style conversations to physical sexual advancescanbe consideredworkplace sexual harassment. Determining the boundaries of the "fine line" between what is and what isn't considered sexual harassment can become a nightmare for HR departments and thoseresponsible for creating workplace policies. To make things even more challenging, the stereotypical male-on-female sexual harassment is no longer acompany's only concern. As mentioned in our post "Sexual Harassment Against Men in the Workplace," male-on-male and female-on-male sexual harassment is a growing concern in the workplace.
Types of Harassment
The harassment men face in the workplace can present itself in forms different from those faced by women. Although men may face physical force from females or other males in the workplace, the most confusing area of male on male sexual harassment is related to "locker room humor."
In the MSNNBC article, "Male Sexual Harassment is Not a Joke," by Eve Tahmincioglu, she writes about some of the stereotypical responses given when men speak about sexual harassment, such as in the case below:
"Thomas, who works in academia but didn't want his full name used, found himself in an office made up of mainly women who would routinely share and copy each other emailed jokes and emails about men. A few, he adds, 'made fun of men's unique anatomy, if you know what I mean.' The behavior, he says, made him feel isolated. When he finally addressed the matter with the women in the office, 'the women were stunned, generally with a You've got to be kidding,' kind of attitude. And they kept doing it'."
Unfortunately, this response is all too frequent when it comes to men speaking up about situations that make them uncomfortable. Although this example isn't exactly a form of sexual harassment, it depicts the very reality of some people's opinions surrounding sexual harassment targeted at men.
According to the EEOC:
"Sexual conduct becomes unlawful only when it is unwelcome. The challenged conduct must be unwelcome in the sense that the employee did not solicit or incite it, and in the sense that the employee regarded the conduct as undesirable or offensive. When confronted with conflicting evidence as to welcomeness, the Commission looks at the record as a whole and at the totality of circumstances evaluating each situation on a case-by-case basis."
This definition from the EEOC helps determine the barriers for "crossing the line" when it comes to actions that could potentially be considered sexual harassment. The fact that claims are handled on a case by case basis is extremely important, as the circumstances vary depending on the involved parties and their relationship to each other. The EEOC provides the public with guidance and examples of situations involving sexual harassment. An interesting example they bring forward, that I have slightly added to,is the fact that in some cases:
"The courts and the Commission have considered whether the complainant welcomed sexual conduct by acting in a sexually aggressive manner, using sexually-oriented language, or soliciting the sexual conduct. If the plaintiff regularly uses vulgar language, initiates sexually-oriented conversations with her (or his)co-workers, asks male (or female)employees about their marital sex lives and whether they engaged in extramarital affairs and discussed their own sexual encounters. In rejecting the plaintiff's claim of 'hostile environment' harassment, the court found that any propositions or sexual remarks by co-workers were prompted by their own sexual aggressiveness and sexually- explicit conversations."
DevelopingAnti-Harassment Policies
With more men speaking out than ever before, employers need to create policies that clearly define sexual harassment and provide training to all employees. Employers need to make it clear that any form of sexual harassment from either gender will be taken seriously, dealt with in the same manner and isstrictly prohibited in the workplace.
To help get this message across, it's important to broaden the terminology used in the company policies when referring to sexual harassment.When preparing or updating policies, take into consideration thedifferent forms of sexual harassment- as you can see from the examples above, sexual harassment spans much further than sexual advances and inappropriate gestures. Provide examples of each type of sexual harassmentto help employees understand what is and isn't acceptable behaviour.
In order to develop an anti-sexual harassment policy that covers all employees, regardless of gender, make sure that any examples provided refrain from stereotypes. In some cases, it might even be wise to exclude mentioning an employee's gender when providing examples. This technique helps broaden the scope of the policy by demonstrating the fact that there are no limitations of the anti-sexual harassment policy.
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