Sexual Harassment Facts…

Page Content
 Forms of harassment
 Unacceptable behaviors

Thanks to recent Supreme Court decisions, highly publicized lawsuits and huge settlements, sexual harassment has become a really hot topic. Yet most people are still confused about the difference between acceptable behavior and harassment. Is flirting okay? Casual hugs? A dinner invitation?

The problem is that there are no hard and fast answers to these questions. Cases of sexual harassment are as unique as the individuals involved. What one person labels harassment another may consider acceptable behavior. This subjective element is the source of much of the confusion surrounding sexual harassment.

Fortunately, there are facts that can help you understand this important issue and inform your workplace choices.

Sexual harassment in the workplace is a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

A brief definition of sexual harassment is:

"..unwanted sexual advances or visual, verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature."

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (E.E.O.C.) provides a more complete definition:

"Unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal and physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when:

1. submission to such conduct is made explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual's employment, or

2. submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual , or

3. such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonable interfering with an individual's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.

1. Quid pro quo, which occurs when:

• an employee is forced to submit to unwanted or unwelcome advances or attention to get or keep their job, even if this is "just understood" and not explicitly stated.
• submitting to or rejecting the harassment is the basis for an employment decision that affects the employee.

2. A hostile environment, which exists when:

• the harassment itself is intended to or does interfere with the person's work or creates "an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment," whether or not there is any other unfavorable job action.

Behaviors that are always unacceptable include:

• physical contact that includes touching, pinching, patting, kissing, rubbing up against, fondling, groping, grabbing or assault
• interfering with or blocking movement
• verbal sexual advances or propositions
• suggestive or obscene letters, notes, invitations or email received at work or at home
• repeated face-to-face, telephone or email invitations after being refused
• making or using derogatory comments, epithets, slurs and jokes
• leering, making sexual gestures, displaying sexually suggestive objects or pictures, cartoons or posters
• verbal abuse of a sexual nature, including graphic comments about an individual's body, sexually degrading words to describe an individual
• unwanted sexual advances or attention
• obscene or suggestive sounds
• passing over qualified employees for promotion in favor of an employee who is sexually involved with the boss
• obscene or suggestive gifts
• frequent discussion of sexual acts and exploits