Harassment Case Study

2.1. Harassment:

Harassment is considered form of discrimination on the grounds of gender and, thus, it is contradicting to the principle of equal treatment between men and women.

2.1.1. Definition of harassment:

Harassment is any improper and/or unwelcome behavior that might reasonably be expected or perceived to be offensive or humiliating to another person. Harassment may take the form of words, gestures or actions which tend to offend, annoy, abuse, intimidate, humiliate, or embarrass another person or which create an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment (Salman et al, 2016: 89). Under title seven of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, sexual harassment is classified as a form of gender discrimination. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines harassment as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature that interferes with employment or work performance or creates an intimidating or offensive work environment (McLaughlin et al, 2012: 626).

Harassment is defined as unwelcome behavior that is based on race, color, religion, sex, origin, age, disability or genetic information. Harassment becomes improper when enduring the offensive behavior becomes a condition of continued employment, when the behavior is

For example when employees are offered a job promotion or a raise in the salary in return for a sexual favor or when they are threatened by a reciprocal action if they do not comply with the manager or supervisor advances. Another thing about Quid Pro Quo harassment is that it is considered as a form of on-the-job blackmail; however, defining the link between the unwelcome/improper sexual behavior and the employer’s action is mandatory for verifying that type of sexual harassment. (Laxman et al, 2014: