Sexual Harassment of Women in Employment

This paper addresses sexual harassment of women in employment. Within this context, discussion focuses on difficulties of legal definition, incidence, motivation (power-seeking vs. sexual attraction), women's attitudes, and managerial ignorance of women's rights on the job. The paper is divided into two sections: sexual harassment and employer liability and responsibility.

Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination as defined by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,1 and the usual remedies apply--back pay, reinstatement or front-pay injunctive relief, and attorney's fees. Many, early court decisions tended to treat sexual advances on the job as harmless personal matters outside the scope of sex discrimination statutes. These early decisions were reversed on appeal as the courts gradually turned to the view that sexual harassment does constitute sex discrimination.2

As the courts recognized that sexual harassment constitutes sex discrimination, the difficulties of a legal definition became apparent. For instance, questions were raised regarding proof of sexual harassment charges, credibility, burden of proof, and legal complexities arose regarding the range of prohibited conduct.3 This significant and controversial issue received some clarification by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC):

Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favor, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when (1) subm

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en as socially deviant sex objects, and may face discrimination and harassment. Women pursue these non-traditional jobs because of financial incentives and improved status. Those women who work in jobs traditional for women and who come in contact with many men are also likely to be viewed as sex objects. Few men work in the lower paying, lower status female-dominated fields, and those who do so tend to return to male-dominated work later. In areas where sex ratios are more even, sexual harassment is minimal, and sex-role spillover is less of a problem.21 In the 1980's sexual harassment is more subtle than boss chasing secretary around the desk.22 It is also more pervasive and more expensive. Sexual harassment complaints by female employees were reported at 90 percent of the nation's largest corporations. Two-thirds of the complaints were lodged against immediate supervisors and upper management, while a greater proportion of cases involved co-workers rather than boss-subordinate incidents.23 As the law and society have indicated, sexual harassment in the workplace is unacceptable regardless of the motivation.24 The harasser must be disciplined for the harassment in a way that directly communicates in no uncertain term

Category: Government - S