Sexual Harassment

(This article appeared in the July/August 2009 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)

Joyce B. Robinson, Research & Education Department Director

In Fiscal Year 2008, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received approximately 14,000 charges of sexual harassment; nearly 12,000 were resolved. Victims received more than $47 million in damages, with some aggrieved individuals obtaining additional monetary benefits through litigation.

Five out of six sexual harassment charges are filed by women. According to the EEOC, unwelcome advances, requests for favors, and other verbal or physical conduct constitute sexual harassment when the behavior affects an individual’s employment; unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance; or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.

Unlawful sexual harassment does not necessarily involve economic injury or disciplinary action against the victim. Furthermore, the victimized employee does not have to be the person harassed; it could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.

Quid Pro Quo and ‘Hostile’

Sexual harassment can include: verbal abuse (propositions, lewd comments and insults), visual abuse (leering or displaying pornography that embarrasses or intimidates), or physical abuse (inappropriate touching or gestures).

Quid pro quo harassment occurs when an employee suffers or is threatened with some kind of harm. This occurs, for example, if a person with authority over the victim makes a “put out or get out” demand, or offers rewards for sexual favors. Victims who resist can be fired or passed over for a promotion, or their life on the job can be made more difficult.

Hostile environment harassment occurs whenever anyone — supervisor, co-worker, or customer — creates an abusive situation or interferes with the employee’s work performance through “unwelcome” words or deeds based on the employee’s gender.

To qualify as sexual harassment, unwelcome gender-based conduct must be both subjectively abusive to the person affected and objectively severe or pervasive enough to create what a reasonable person would consider an abusive work environment. A court, for example, will consider the frequency and severity of the unwelcome conduct and whether it was physically threatening or humiliating or merely an offensive utterance.

The Form It Takes

Employees who engage in any of the following activities on the job in the presence of a co-worker may be charged with sexual harassment: using demeaning or inappropriate terms such as “Babe,” “Honey,” or “Stud;” discussing sexual activities; making suggestive gestures; telling dirty jokes, or displaying suggestive pictures; or touching, hugging, or brushing up against someone. Sexual harassment also can include asking personal questions, spreading sexual rumors, or asking for dates after an employee has repeatedly rejected such requests.

Consensual dating, joking, and touching are not considered sexual harassment unless they are unwelcome. If in doubt, ask yourself these questions: Is the conduct offensive to the employee it is directed toward? Is there unequal power between the employees? Does the victimized employee have to tolerate the conduct in order to keep his/her job? Is the conduct so offensive that it interferes with the job and makes the employee’s work environment unpleasant?

If the answer to any of the above is “yes,” the conduct may constitute sexual harassment. The offended employee typically responds in one of the following ways:

Coerced Submission to unwelcome sexual advances because of physical, psychological, or economic duress; Outright Rejection — telling the supervisor or co-worker that the advances are unwelcome; Initial Acceptance, Then Rejection — one party wants to break off a relationship and the other wants it to continue; or Ambiguous Rejection , in which there is a failure to communicate true feelings. An example is a response of, “I have a previous commitment,” instead of “no.”

If you truly are offended by the conduct of a co-worker or supervisor, be careful to avoid giving an ambiguous response — never send “mixed signals.”

This is the first of a two-part article on sexual harassment in the workplace. The September/October column will outline what to do when you are a victim of or a witness to such behavior.

[Click here to read part two in the series on sexual harassment in the workplace.]