Forms of Sexual Harassment: A Case Study

Coming from a country in a part of the world where being misogynistic is incredibly prevalent and often encouraged, I have witnessed and been around many acts of sexual harassment as well as victims of it. At a very young age, I learned that my first cousin was sexually harassed by her husband’s brother when they were alone and that is when I learned the true horrors of the world. Everyone knew the truth about what happened, but no one helped my cousin, not her husband, her father, or her brothers. Sadly, Where I’m from, a third world country, is not the only place things like this happen. There are acts of sexual harassment even in countries like America in big corporations such as Hollywood. We’ve learned about these many acts through recent

STATEMENT OF FACTS: Sheila White interviewed with Marvin Brown and obtained a job as a “track laborer” with Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Company. Shortly after her hire date, however, she assumed forklift operator duties. This new assignment still fell under the “track laborer” position description, and White occasionally performed those duties although her primary responsibility was operating the forklift. Three months into her new job, White complained to the company that her immediate supervisor was sexually harassing her on the job. He was temporarily suspended and required to attend sexual harassment training. White was then informed that she was being reassigned to track labor duties only. White

In what may be the most bewildering court ruling ever produced, “The court held that the complainant’s refusal to have sexual relations with her supervisor, and the resulting elimination of her job, was not discrimination. Rather it was due to ‘the subtleties of an inharmonious personal relationship’” (Gregg, pg. 304,

Does the phrase “That’s what she said.” sound familiar? The phrase is from the popular hit television series The Office. The guy behind this popular quote is none other than Dunder Mifflin’s Michael Scott. This quote is not only inappropriate but it is also a form of sexual harassment and Michael Scott is the king of sexual harassment. Unfortunately sexual harassment is a problem that is occurring in the workplace. In another popular movie, Horrible Bosses, sexual harassment is one of the main points in the story. The best example of this is when Charlie Day’s boss, Jennifer Anniston, constantly makes sexual gestures and inappropriate statements at him. However, in The Office and Horrible Bosses, sexual harassment is taken to an extreme. What is unfortunate about sexual harassment is that most people do not realize that it is illegal in the workplace. However, it is possible that a few comments slip out every now and then but they should not be taken lightly. Unfortunately in these situations, there is nothing done to prevent it in the workplace, which I have decided to look into the problem of preventing sexual harassment in the workplace.

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

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

Sexual harassment in the workplace is a huge problem in recent history. It can happen to anyone and it can happen everywhere. It can affect all types of races, gender and age. Statistics today shows that more and more sexual harassment has become an issue due to the large number of cases presented. Mainstream media becomes consume covering sexual harassment because of the high profile cases. Sexual harassment becomes a topic on various TV shows, and on some major morning radio talk shows mostly everyday. Sexual harassment laws must be strengthened in order to fix what has become a serious problem today in the workplace.

What would you do if you were the victim? Where would you go for help?

a) Men portrayal North Country shows that sexual harassment is not a romance, love and sex but rather about man power over woman. It proved that the workplace in reality men and women are unequal. The film describes the bad effect of the male power and control over woman as a central issue of discrimination. For instance, Josey’s colleague feel that woman have no status being anywhere to do such a manly work. North Country demonstrates that the men are keeping sexual harassment to the women in the work place.

Sexual assault is a dangerous behavior that is widely spread in our societies all around the world. Some studies show that this kind of problem is due to several accidents that have occurred in a person’s childhood or adulthood. It has negative effects on a victim’s life. The paper offers insights about this topic with several references and quotes from many experts. However, the term sexual harassment is defined and explained thoroughly. The causes of this serious problem are presented and then the several harmful effects are mentioned and explained. A few approaches can be followed in order to prevent this offense from happening again, hoping to save the lives of many people.

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.

This writer will be discussing a case where a male employee files a sexual harassment claim against the employer as the male employee identifies as being gay. He also is filing discrimination on the basis of his gender and alleges retaliation as he was terminated after he had complained about his female coworker. Apparently, the male employee alleged that a female employee while at a dinner and concert after work hours grabbed his privates. It is important to note that the male employee’s performance prior to the incident was declining and was counseled on several occasions by his employer about his declining production. Furthermore, this writer will be discussing whether if the facts could result in liability to the employer for sexual harassment or gender discrimination. Also, this writer will be integrating and referring to various sources and cases that

Social inequality is a pressing issue in society today. It is a problem that is embedded deeply in society and has a harmful and negative impact. It creates an uneven distribution of resources and opportunities in society thereby causing people to be marginalized. There are many categories associated with social inequality. Examples include race, ethnicity, age, gender, power and social class. This paper will examine gender inequality in society. Using an article from the Toronto Star, I will focus on sexual harassment as an issue of gender inequality in the workplace and the impact it has had on the self-esteem as well as opportunities and achievements of women. Gender Inequality can be defined as the unequal treatment and prejudice of a person on the basis of sex and gender roles. Sexual harassment is further defined as any unwelcome sexual advances, request for sexual favours of verbal, gestural or physical nature and with objectionable overtones which cause discomfort, humiliation, fear or anger (I.L.O, 1958). Gender Inequality is mostly affected by women. In the workplace, schools, political positions and even in families, women are seen as the inferior sex. In Canadian history, it was not until the 1900s women were given equal rights to vote and the 1920s before a woman was elected in parliament. (Smith, 2011) This is to show that gender discrimination has been embedded in society for a very long time and although laws have been made to make sure males and females are