1. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Sexual Harassment
Prevention Laws At
Workplace
Introduction to the new act and implementation challenges
- Abhyudaya Agarwal, Co-Founder, iPleaders (creators of a cloud-based toolkit on
sexual harassment law compliance)
Legal Expert: Siboney Sagar, former General Counsel at British Telecom and
General Electric

2. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Women specific inequalities and key
reasons for a non-conducive
environment at the workplace
 Glass ceiling
 Gender-discrimination against women
 Delayed entry of women into the formal workforce
 Maternity and career growth
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

3. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
 Precedent- based (principles emerged from a court
decision and not a Parliamentary statute)
 Not proactively adopted by companies or even
government departments. Even the Supreme Court did
not have a committee to handle sexual harassment
Impact of opinion in Vishaka Case
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

4. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
1. Substantial increase of women in the economy with
more jobs requiring skills possessed by women, increased
interaction and collaboration between both sexes
irrespective of culture of culture, social or economic
background, and
Reasons for the enactment of the law
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

5. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
2. Structural change in the economy with more jobs
requiring skills possessed by women, increased
interaction and collaboration between both sexes
irrespective of cultural, social or economic background,
and
Reasons for the enactment of the law
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

6. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
3.Increased awareness of workplace-related rights
Reasons for the enactment of the law
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

7. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Key obligations of
an employer
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

8. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
The challenge is in creating a comprehensive policy that
can cover important aspects without requiring employees
to refer to the act.
Obligation #1 : Draft and implement a sexual
harassment prevention policy or include suitable clauses
in the employment contract / service rules or standing
orders prohibiting sexual harassment.
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

9. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
1 for every office, branch or location which has 10 or
more people working.
(This provision is heavily criticized by industry)
Obligation #2: Creation of Internal
Complaints Committees
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

10. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: How many members should it have?
Answer: Four, as follows:
1 external member (who is familiar with issues
pertaining to sexual harassment or is from an NGO /
women’s organization)
1 senior level woman employee from the organization
2 employees from the branch
(Minimum 50 percent members must be women)
Obligation #2: Creation of Internal
Complaints Committees
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

11. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Compliance 1: Publish notice informing employees of
consequences of sexual harassment must be put up in the
premises. It should also inform employees about the
constitution of ICC and provide names of its members.
Compliance 2: Submit report on implementation of
interim measures suggested by the ICC
Obligation #3: Perform necessary compliance
requirements
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

12. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Compliance 3: Monitor submission of reports by the ICC
within stipulated timeframe. The ICC must submit an
annual report to the employer and an inquiry report
(which must be made in 10 days of completing inquiry.
For reference, inquiry must be completed within 90 days
of the complaint being filed.
Compliance 4: Include information pertaining to sexual
harassment cases in the annual report of the organization
Obligation #3: Perform necessary compliance
requirements
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

13. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
ICCs may need necessary infrastructure to operate within
the organization (e.g. dedicated room, confidential
dockets for file preservation, comfort that they are free to
award legal reliefs as per the merits of the case)
Obligation #4: Empower ICCs to conduct
investigations
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

14. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Provision of data and information, communication
between employees and cooperation of people working
in different departments is necessary.
For example, an employee from another department may
be called in as a witness in a proceeding – he should not
be unreasonably precluded from appearing before the ICC
on work-related grounds by seniors within the
department.
Obligation #5: Set up systems for cooperation
amongst various departments to facilitate
resolution of complaints
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

15. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Subject matter of such training should be
more comprehensive than was the case
prior to the new law.
Obligation #6: Sensitize employees about
their rights against sexual harassment at the
workplace
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

16. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Subject matter and content must cover:
1. What constitutes sexual harassment at the workplace,
2. Remedies (including interim measures) that are
available – suspension, warning, termination, transfer,
withholding of promotions, deduction of salary.
3. Description of occupational roles which are awarded
protection (e.g. are interns or off-site workers covered?)
Obligation #6: Sensitize employees about
their rights against sexual harassment at the
workplace
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

17. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Subject matter and content must cover:
4. How to seek redressal if the employee is not within her
employer’s office premises (e.g. woman visiting a
client’s office or working in an exhibition, harassment
at a hotel or a store, etc.),
5. Necessary information for employees to file a
complaint in case they are harassed
6. Support available to handle the after-effects of sexual
harassment.
Obligation #6: Sensitize employees about
their rights against sexual harassment at the
workplace
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

18. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Penalties of non-compliance
● Fine of INR 50,000 (INR 100,000 in case of
repetitive non-compliance)
AND/OR
● Cancellation of business licence.
The fine is not substantial but risks from cancellation of
business license and reputational risks are significant
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

19. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Challenges Faced By
Employers
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

20. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
1. Is it comprehensive enough to explain all that is
necessary for an employee to know or does it require the
employee to refer to the 2013 Act to understand it?
2. Does it inform the employee of his or her rights such as
confidentiality or interim measures?
Challenge #1: Creation of an effective sexual
harassment prevention policy
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

21. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
1. When to create – When the number of employees in a
location exceeds 10. What if there are no women
employees? (Although an ICC is mandatory, logistically it
cannot be created as minimum two women employees
are necessary).
2. Logistical problems in creation of ICCs in remote areas
or for every retail outlet
3. How to identify external experts – budgetary
constraints, absence of trained professionals, etc.
Challenge #2: Creation of ICCs
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

22. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
1. Training in-house legal and compliance teams
on the aspects highlighted above under the head
‘Perform compliance requirements’.
2. How to measure compliance periodically and
have an organization-wide compliance map,
especially in large organizations.
Challenge #3: Compliance requirements
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

23. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Difficult due to its technical nature (requires
imparting adjudicatory and related skillsets).There
is absence of people with right experience,up-
skilling the ICC is not easy if they don’t have prior
experience. There is lack of experienced trainers
with the necessary skills.
Challenge #4: Training of ICC members
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

24. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Obvious challenges are:
a) How should they conduct investigation?
b) How should a decision be arrived at?
c) How should the material on record be
appreciated?
d) What can be done if there is no material on
record?
e) How should you handle false complaints?
Challenge #4: Training of ICC members
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

25. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Obvious challenges are:
f) How should orders for interim measures be
written?
g) How should the inquiry report be prepared?
h) Is it necessary to separate the external
member from an employer-funded trainer? from
the investigator?
Challenge #4: Training of ICC members
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

26. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
The inquiry and decision-making process is
subject to challenge in a court of law if certain
basic procedural requirements are not followed,
such as allowing both sides to represent
themselves.
Challenge #4: Training of ICC members
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

27. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Next few slides will address some challenging
questions at this level:
Challenge #5: Set up systems and create
processes that create a conducive environment
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

28. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question:How does one ensure that
confidentiality of the complainant’s and victim’s
identity is preserved? What are the justifications
that HR can provide colleagues when the
complainant or victim is transferred or
terminated? Which parts of the organization
must be made aware of the truth on a need-to-
know basis?
Challenge #5: Set up systems and create
processes that create a conducive environment
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

29. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: At a practical level, how can one
prevent retaliation against complainants?
Challenge #5: Set up systems and create
processes that create a conducive environment
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

30. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: Are there ways to encourage a culture
when instances of sexual harassment are
reported without hesitation, instead of letting a
‘hush-hush’ culture, which silences the employee
and protects senior management, prevail?
Challenge #5: Set up systems and create
processes that create a conducive environment
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

31. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Apart from soft skills and technical skills related
to the business, this kind of training this has
typically not been the employer’s forte.
There may also be lack of trainers with the right
skillsets who are available at the desired budget.
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

32. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Next few slides will address some challenging
questions at this level:
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

33. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: How can an organization prevent men
from feeling alienated, as legal protection and
rights have only been granted to women as per
the law?
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

34. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: Can an organization empower men as
well to report against sexual harassment?
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

35. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: How do you reach out to 100 percent
of the workforce in your training?
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

36. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: How does an organization ensure
regular access to updates and refresher courses?
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

37. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: How does an organization ensure that
its employees actually read and learn and do not
mechanically sign on policies?
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

38. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
Question: Do employees have access to the
learning when they really need it?
Challenge #6: Sensitization-related challenges
Part III. Challenges
faced by employers
Part I. Introduction
Part II. Key obligations
of employers

39. For any questions, write to esh@ipleaders.in
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and Cloud ComplyTM with sexual
harassment laws?
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