Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

What comes to mind when you think of sexual harassment? Most people picture an individual grabbing another individual unwillingly in attempt of committing nonconsensual sex. However, sexual harassment can be something as insignificant as being called something negative. It is anything that makes a person feel uncomfortable about his/her sexuality. According to the law, sexual harassment is anything from unwelcome sexual advances and requests for sexual favors to verbal statements of a sexual nature. It violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Sexual Harassment Policy, which is currently in place in all schools and work places, is aimed at providing an educational and work environment free of harassment. This includes sexual harassment and every form of intimidation or exploitation.

Acts of sexual harassment against another individual have sadly become a common incidence in the workplace. It can be either physical or verbal. In 2008 the Association of Women for Action and Research conducted a survey addressing the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace. The study, which included 500 respondents and 92 companies, showed that 79% of the victims are women and 21% were men; 54% had experienced some form of workplace sexual harassment, 27% experienced harassment by their colleague, while, 17% were harassed by their superior. The study also showed that 12% had received threats of termination if they did no comply with the requests of the sexual harassers ("Statistics | AWARE | Workplace Sexual Harassment", n.d.).

Quid pro quo, which means “this or that” in Latin, is used to describe an exchange that is given, often times in terms of goods and/or services. In sexual harassment, this is illustrated as a connection that ...

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...rom occurring in their workplace location. The only way that we can stop these types of behaviors from occurring is by becoming knowledgeable about the topic and making sure everyone is also aware of the topic and the preventative measures that are available. Sexual harassment in the workplace may always be a problem but by working together with those who work around you, we can lower the chances of it happening in your particular workplace.

Works Cited

Sexual Harassment - Prevention of Sexual Harassment. (n.d.). Retrieved March 26, 2014, from http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/svaw/harassment/explore/5prevention.htm Sexual Harassment. (n.d.). Retrieved March 26, 2014, from http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/sexual_harassment.cfm Statistics | AWARE | Workplace Sexual Harassment. (n.d.). Retrieved March 26, 2014, from

http://www.aware.org.sg/ati/wsh-site/14-statistics/