Army SHARP Program: Sexual Harassment Prevention

For years women have been trying to gain gender equality throughout the working world, along with in the military. Since the beginning of a uniformed military, women could not serve in military occupational specialty (MOS) positions that put them in direct combat roles. Although many women have contributed in significant ways, they have not been authorized to serve in MOS such as infantry, artillery, or armor. As the war on terrorism has developed since 9/11, women have slowly worked their way farther into the military and its many roles. This resulted in women being placed into direct combat roles. Though women have been allowed into many different roles, there is still one battle that they have yet to win and this time the majority is not backing them. Women are trying to gain access to United States Special Operations units in every branch of the military and the majority of these operators are not happy about it. While some people believe women deserve equality and the chance to do what men can do in the military, that is why women should not be

HARASSMENT/ASSAULT RESPONSE AND PREVENTION (SHARP) INITIATIVES. This ALARACT dealt with how the Army would implement the new SHARP policy. This policy took the place of the old Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) program. The main push of the initiative is to institute a culture of change within the United States Army.

Over the last several years the Canadian Military has come under considerable pressure to appropriately deal with the moral issue of sexual harassment and assault of women within its sphere. The Canadian media has given a number of reports during this time that have attacked military leaders for their failure to bring about constructive change. The moral issue of how women are treated in the military is of upmost importance; however I have chosen to write on the moral issue of honesty and accuracy in news reporting. Was the media honest and accurate in its reporting when it constantly used a news-byte from a recent interview with General Tom Lawson, leader of the Canadian Armed Forces? The news-byte being considered gave a detrimental or slanted view of

Sexual harassment was made illegal in the workplace under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This article “protects individuals against employment discrimination on the bases of race and color, as well as national origin, sex, and religion” (“Title VII”). Although the bill was originally passed to combat the “growing unrest in the country emanating from the pervasive and egregious racial discrimination and segregation exposed during the civil rights protests in the 1960s,” it has since grown to encompass all areas of discrimination in the field of employment (“Pre 1965”). The same act also created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to enforce

The values of honor and trust are the lifeblood of our military, and every act of sexual assault directly undermines those values. So too does every act of retaliation against those who report these crimes.

Of all of the subjects that we’ve discussed in class so far, I think the one that received the most feedback was the topic of sexual harassment/assault. We of course talked about the various forms of harassment/assault, and how public discussion of this topic raises awareness of the issue. Many consequences rise based on sexual harassment/assault; beginning with the victim on a personal basis. My personal reaction to this subject is one of familiarity due to my training in the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response & Prevention Program (SHARP). Over the years there have been numerous incidents of harassment/assault in the Military which is why the (SHARP) program was implemented. With all the means of technology people currently use, they are informed of most incidents, which occur in this world. It is noticeable

What were some of the factors that contributed to the abuse that has occurred in the military and continues to occur? The answer is the way leadership implemented the change of allowing women to serve in the military. When tailhook happened it was 1991 and women had just been allowed to serve their countries. However the high ranking members of the military failed to lead by example. The military was changing and that was met by resistance from the existing male members of the organization. The military failed to handle the inertia that was caused by change resistance. Failing to handle and investigate reports of sexual abuse and misconduct when women and men reported the incidences led to the acceptance for the followers to continue the sexual

Harassment has no boundaries when it comes to race, age, or gender. As mentioned previously, there are sometimes underlying problems when it comes to lower-status positions and high-status positions. Power can be dangerous in the hands of the wrong person and can often be said in the workplace where power can lead to sexual harassment. Debbie Dougherty, an assistant professor of communication in the College of Arts and Science at the University of Missouri-Columbia, did an assessment based on opinions and perceptions of 23 participants. The study was focused around the question “why does sexual harassment occur?” and the most common answer that came up was “power.” One thing Debbie noticed was the fact that men and women had different opinions

A Noncommissioned Officer's duties are numerous and must be taken seriously. An NCO's duty includes taking care of soldiers, which is your priority. Leaders must know and understand their soldiers well enough to train them as individuals and teams to operate proficiently. This will give them confidence in their ability to perform well under the difficult and demanding conditions of battle. Individual training is the principle duty and responsibility of NCOs. NCOs are responsible to fulfill not only their individual duties, but also to ensure their teams and units are successful. NCOs are accountable for your personal conduct and that of your soldiers. Noncommissioned officers have three types of duties: specified duties, directed duties

Sexual harassment is discrimination that involves any uninvited comments, exploits, or behavior regarding sex, gender, or sexual orientation. If any type of violation is made by a co-worker, a boss, a work acquaintance, or even a non-employee such as a client, vendor, or contractor, this will be considered unlawful sexual harassment within the work environment. Sexual harassment can create a hostile and uneasy work environment. Sexual harassment includes inappropriate verbal advances, unwelcomed physical behavior that creates an aggressive, hostile, intimidating or malicious work environment for employees. Sexual harassment includes sending suggestive e-mails, notes, and

Military-civilian relationships have been problematic when intermingling of races occurred. For almost twenty years, America fought in the notorious Vietnam War, supporting South Vietnam. Due to the length of the war, military-civilian relationships were bound to develop. Thus, both the South Vietnamese and the American government made policies in order to maintain an alliance between their citizens. Due to encouraged toxic masculinity, the presence of femininity in the military, and racial differences, policies, such as the “V.D. Control” policy and the policy listed in the “Fact Sheet,” were essential in order to promote healthy relationships between American troops and Vietnamese women.

It is said to be that men aren’t “influenced” by experiences that women might label as potential harassment related circumstances. On average, men have more social, organizational, and physical power than women generally seem to have. “This power differential is logically smaller between a man and his perpetrator than between a woman and her perpetrator; thus, men are considerably less likely than women to experience such behavior as harassing.” (Waldo, Fitsgereld.) This can help demonstrate how role reversals can play a part in how someone can be interpreted in their day to day gestures or how they may associate themselves with one another.

The objective of providing sexual harassment training is to provide knowledge of what behaviors can be considered sexual harassment, prevention of such behavior, and consequences for violation of sexual harassment policy. This training is necessary to show employees they are a valued resource, and the company takes an interest in employee safety and satisfaction while maintaining productivity. The organization will annually provide an interactive training on the company intranet over a one month period. All employees will receive email notification they are signed up for training with required completion by month end. The first part of training will consist of reading the sexual harassment

As seen in the case study, a court decision may be one way for any company to legally define what constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace, but there are many ways to define sexual harassment. Everyone has different views and tolerance levels towards sexual harassment. When a case of sexual harassment occurs in a workplace, however, it comes down to how the courts define sexual harassment. The Supreme Court defines sexual harassment to be unlawful in two ways. “The first type involves sexual harassment that results in a tangible employment action;” this is referred to as quid pro quo. For example, if an employee complies with the harasser’s request, then she will get a raise. This unlawful act is usually presented in the workplace by a person who has an upper hand, such as a manager, to ensure that s/he will get what s/he wants. Employees are often victimized by fear that they will not get promoted or that they will get fired. They also dread that if a complaint is filed, it will not be handled correctly. “This instance of sexual harassment always involves another violation of employee rights; [sic] wrongful termination.” This would occur, for instance, when “a supervisor . . . tells a subordinate that . . . she must be sexually cooperative with [him] or . . . she will be fired, and who then indeed does fire the subordinate for not submitting” (“U.S. Supreme Court Defines”). [schwinlaw.com]

There are federal laws put in position to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. Most employees sometimes don’t even realize what sexual harassment is are when they are committing this violation. On the flip side an employee may not realized when they are being sexually harassed and when is the appropriate time to speak up. Education on sexual harassment has increased within the workplace as cases are more public and fines are getting steeper.