Abstract: Sexual harassment is one of the most uncomfortable issues people face within a work environment. This paper is designed to explain how sexual harassment happens, as well as the effects it has on the victims subjected to it. That being said, it is important to realize that sexual harassment can be from a male to female, a male to a male, a female to a male, or a female to another female. When it comes to harassment in the workplace, it has been shown that bosses and managers are often the ones who have done most of the harassing. Author, Catherine MacKinnon, wrote a book that focuses on the legal advances that deal with sexual harassment. Within this book she has mentions the several different types of sexual harassment that is often witnessed within the working environment.
Introduction: Sexual harassment is one of the most uncomfortable issues people face within a work environment. Discrimination can be shown in many different forms. These forms can consist of either words, actions or a combination of both. Many times when you hear about sexual harassment, it often involves a female being harassed by a male. However, sexual harassment can come in many different forms and be done by an individual to another. It can be from a male to female, a male to a male, a female to a male, or a female to another female. Harassment is illegal whether it is sexual, physical or emotional. This is a major issue in many work environments, and is one of the largest problems among workers. Studies have shown that nearly fifty percent of females who work in a doctor's office, hospital, or schools and colleges have experienced some form of sexual harassment. What most studies have not shown us, is that men are often affected by these behaviors as well and often sexual harassment cases get left undocumented. Men are less likely to report these types of harassments.
When it comes to harassment in the workplace, it has been shown that bosses and managers have done most of the harassing. Catherine MacKinnon wrote a book that focuses on the legal advances that deal with sexual harassment. This book mentioned the different types of sexual harassment that is often witnessed in work environments. There are often two types of sexual harassment that can be exhibited in a work environment. First off, there is hostile sexual harassment, which is where the unwelcomed harassment is severe and alters the conditions of employment. An example of this is when a situation begins to get physical and not just verbal. Secondly, there is Quid Pro Quo, where the employment decisions are based on the willingness of the employee’s sexual advances. An example of this is when a promotion is only offered if the employee sleeps with you (Lindgren, pg 141).
A news company in New York did a survey with nearly six-hundred different men. This survey was conducted to determine how many of these men felt as if they had ever made any attempts towards women that might have been viewed as harassment. Out of all the men who took the survey, it was concluded that at least two percent of the men admitted to pressuring women into sexual actions. Another twenty-five percent of these men admitted to sharing inappropriate jokes and videos in a work environment. These numbers helped prove that sexual harassment is more of an issue then some of these people realized. Studies have shown that nearly fifty percent of females who work in a doctor’s office, hospital, or schools and colleges have experienced some form of sexual harassment. It did not matter if they were a student, professor, nurse, physician or patient. They were all placed in a situation in which they felt uncomfortable or unsafe at a given time (Danielsen).
Despite many beliefs, sexual harassment does not only affect females. In fact, many males suffer from harassment in working environments as well. Men will rarely acknowledge that anything has happened when it comes to sexual harassment. This is often because people believe only women are sexually harassed or raped. Studies have show that heterosexual men are placed in uncomfortable positions at work, just as many women are (Lee). This does not mean that straight men are not harassed also, it is just less studied because of feminist beliefs. Gender harassment is one of the most common types of harassment a person encounters. This is usually accompanied by a sexual joke, inappropriate staring/touching, and the display of sexually obvious materials. Any unwanted sexual attention or comments is usually considered to be harassment. Sometimes people feel as if they are just simply making a joke, but someone else can take it the wrong way and feel uncomfortable. Sexual harassment is so common, yet some people don’t even realize they are creating a problem (Page).
Legally it is much more difficult to define and document sexual harassment, as opposed to how one can document rape. There is often less evidence, so its left to a “he said, she said” argument with little to no actual proof. In many places, sexual harassment in public places are left without a countable violation. At least when it comes to the work environment, some action is usually taken to help stop the problem. However, in most legal systems, this form of behavior is not considered a criminal offense, it’s just considered to be a form of harassment (Luzon). Again, this is linked back to the fact that it’s not always possible to prove whether or not the situation did, or did not take place. To this day, many people fail to realize the true extent of damage these situations have on almost all employees. They are forced to either deal with the harassment, or quit their jobs. There is not always a consequence for the individual who has been doing the harassing. This is usually due to the fact that the person in charge is usually the one causing the problems.
There are many different ways people can prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. Around 1964 the government passed the Civil Rights Act. This act included a portion called Title VII. The Title VII section was placed to prohibit any company from discrimination based on race, nationality, religion, and/or gender. This act also allowed for people to create the EEOC. The EEOC is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. This commission allows investigation, and law suits to be filed on behalf of the workers who complain about harassment and discrimination (Gross). Although Title VII mainly deals with situations containing sex discrimination, it is often linked to sexual harassment and other gender related issues within a working or hostile environment.
There are many different emotional effects sexual harassment has on women in the workplace. Many times women are harassed based on their body shape or clothing choice. While women dress in tight clothing that might reveal cleavage, men get excited and take it as an invitation (Gross). They make women feel as if they have to completely cover up in order to go to work. An outfit that might consist of a tight skirt and button down is often considered stylish and business appropriate. However, a male might assume the short skirt was being worn as a sign she wanted to dress sexy. This gives the male a perfect opportunity to make a comment that could be found offensive. The comment might also be taken as a sign of harassment, even if it was not meant it that context.
As discussed earlier though, sexual harassment can also happen to men just as often as it can happen to women. Men that are sexually harassed often choose not to talk about their experience, or in some cases never even know that they are being harassed at all. Gender bias plays a large role in this, as it is often thought that “big and strong men” cannot be harassed, why would they allow it to happen? How can they stop it though? If a man is groped, inappropriately touched, felt up, etc., then it is assumed they will either be okay with it, or will instead embrace the action. However, that’s not the case, as it can be just as off putting and horrifying to men as it can be to a woman. And the worse part, if a man does come out about being sexually harassed, they are usually ridiculed and looked down on for not being “men” about it (Berdahl). Take for instance the recent Terry Crews case, where Terry Crews came out about being felt up by an agent. Many other people, including stars like Wendy Williams, said terrible things for letting a man like Crews being harassed as such. No one is safe from sexual harassment, and we should treat it as such.
In conclusion