Define and discuss sexual harassment in the workplace

Sexual harassment is unlawful discrimination against a person with respect to that person's compensation, terms of employment, conditions of employment, or privileges of employment, because of or on account of the person's gender.

Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. It can occur in a variety of circumstances, including:

o The victim or the harasser may be a woman or a man.

o The harasser can be the victim's supervisor, an agent of the employer, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker, or a non-employee.

o The victim does not have to be the person harassed but could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.

o Unlawful sexual harassment may occur without economic injury to or discharge of the victim.

o The harasser's conduct must be unwelcome.

Women throughout the world confront physical and sexual violence as well as sex discrimination in the workplace. Public and private sector employers discriminate with impunity against women, as women and as mothers or potential mothers. Sex discrimination in the workplace often is motivated by the frequent perception that women are less reliable than men and that women's productive capacity is compromised by their reproductive function. Although discrimination on the grounds of sex or maternity is prohibited under international human rights law and barred by the domestic laws of most countries, it is nonetheless routinely tolerated by many governments. Aside from the problem of nonenforcement of laws against sex and maternity discrimination, the labor statutes and regulations of some countries are themselves discriminatory in that they exclude women from particular job and training opportunities.

The existence of protective legislation for women sometimes exacerbates the problem of sex discrimination. Protective legislation is intended to shield women from hazardous work or to enable women to balance their responsibilities at work and at home. There exists the International Labor Organization (ILO), which is the main intergovernmental agency responsible for articulating and protecting worker rights.

Sexual harassment in the workplace is a serious event. By ignoring the situation or assuming it will stop on its own, you are leaving the offender to approach others in your office. Understand your rights and take action!