Sexual Harassment Overview

1. SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT
WORKPLACE: AN OVERVIEW
Speaker: Reeta D. Yadav

2. COMPONENTS
 Concepts pertaining to Sexual Harassment
 Theories of Sexual harassment
 Workplace-
 Types/forms of Sexual Harassment
 Categories of victims of sexual harassment
 Nature and Trends on sexual harassment
 Causes of sexual harassment
 Consequences of Sexual Harassment
 Coping strategies
 Legal frame work of Sexual Harassment
 Related Organization/Institutions

3. INTRODUCTION
 Sexual harassment is an offence that contains numerous
intersecting issues of human rights, gender equality, dignity,
health, work conditions, productivity, freedom to practice and
chose one’s profession, right to livelihood, to name a few, since
it impacts on all these areas.
 If workplaces are not made free of discrimination for women,
then a community is set-back. More importantly, it personalises,
silences and makes invisible, a systemic pattern of violations in
the workplace and puts women at risk. In that sense, the
importance of naming and censuring the problem in law cannot
be understated.

4. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HARASSMENT AND
BULLYING
Harassment Bullying
Harassment is an action
that is meant to or
happens to cause
discomfort for the victim.
Bullying is when one
individual, or party, socially
degrades the victim either
for the purpose of increasing
their own self-comfort or for
the enjoyment of others.

5. HARASSMENT
 Harassment is any improper and
unwelcome conduct or comment by a
person which offends, humiliates, or
degrades another person.
 It can take place in different settings,
including home, place of work, school or
via the phone or the internet.

6. Types of
Harassment
Workplace
harassment
Psychological
harassment
Racial
harassment
Religious
harassment
Sexual
harassment

7. WHAT IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT
Any unwelcome sexually determined behaviour such
as; physical contact and advances, sexually colored
remarks, showing pornography and sexual
demands, whether by words or actions. Such
conduct can be humiliating and may constitute a
health and safety problem

8.  Unwelcome sexually determined behaviour such as;
Sexual
Harassment
Physical contact and
advances
Showing
pornography
Sexually colored
remarks
Sexual demands ,
whether by words or
actions

9. TYPES OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT
SN Types Description
1. Gender
Harassment
Generalized sexist statements and behavior that
convey insulting or degrading attitudes about
women. Examples include insulting remarks,
offensive graffiti, obscene jokes or humor about sex
or women in general.
2. Seductive
Behaviour
Unwanted, inappropriate and offensive sexual
advances. Examples include repeated unwanted
sexual invitations, insistent requests for dinner,
drinks or dates, persistent letters, phone calls and
other invitations.

10. CONTINUE..
SN Types Description
3. Sexual
Bribery
Solicitation of sexual activity or other sex-linked
behavior by promise of reward; the proposition may
be either overt or subtle.
4. Sexual
Coercion
Coercion of sexual activity or other sex-linked
behavior by threat of punishment; examples include
negative performance evaluations, withholding of
promotions, threat of termination.
5. Sexual
Imposition
Gross sexual imposition (such as forceful touching,
feeling, grabbing) or sexual assault.

11. FORMS OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT
Physical
Verbal
Visual
(non verbal)

12. PHYSICAL
 Touching
 Unwanted massages
 Patting, caressing, or fondling
 Impeding or blocking movement
 Standing closer than appropriate or necessary for
the work being done, touching or rubbing oneself
sexually around or in view of another person, or
assault.

13. VERBAL
 sexual comments, slurs, jokes, or rumors
 Verbal sexual advances, threats /propositions
 Verbal abuse of a sexual nature
 Making sexual comments –clothing/ body/looks
 Sexually degrading words used
 Suggestive/obscene letters, notes/ invitations
 Turning academic discussions into sexual
discussions
 Asking sexual fantasies, preferences, or history
 Asking questions about to social or sexual life
 Insulting

14. VISUAL
 Leering (looking at someone in sexually
suggestive manner)
 Making suggestive gestures
 Displaying pornography, sexually suggestive pictures,
cartoons, posters or literature
 Having sexually suggestive software on a work or
academic computer
 Suggestive or insulting sounds

15. WHO ARE THE VICTIMS?
 Sexual harassment does not affect women alone,
as men can also be victims. However, women are
more vulnerable due to their position in society.
 Most sexual harassment is carried out by men
against women.
 Sexual harassment affects victims regardless of
age, relationship, disability, physical appearance,
background or professional status.

16. RELATED LITERATURE

17. WHO ARE THE HARASSERS
Workplace harassment can be committed by:
 an employer
 worker
 co-worker
 group of co-workers
 client or customer or
 a member of the public
Related literature
Cecilia Ng et al. 2003. reported the category of sexual
harassers in Malaysia comprising those not in direct
contract of service with a workplace, such as company
vendors, factory bus drivers, and subordinates of
victims.

18. RELATED LITERATURE

19. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
 Sexual harassment was first documented in 1908
(Fitzgerald, et al.1988).
 It was recognised and labelled as problem and the first
research in the area emerged during 1970s (Farley,
1978).
 Sexual harassment is considered both a legal as well as a
psychological phenomenon (Fitzgerald, 1990).
 Documenting the prevalence of sexual harassment has
been one of the first research efforts made in the area.
(Fitzgerald, et. al., 1988).

20. THEORIES OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT
 According to Webster’s 7th New Collegiate
Dictionary (1970), “Theory is a plausible or
scientifically acceptable general principle or body of
principles offered to explain phenomena.”
Although there are no set theory which alone explains
the phenomena, but five theories widely accepted
by the researchers;

21. Theories of
Sexual
Harassment
Sex role spill
over Theory
Organizational
Theory
Four-factor
Theory
Socio-cultural
Theory
Natural or
Biological Theory

22. NATURAL/BIOLOGICAL THEORY
 Natural/Biological theory postulates that male has more
sex drive than female which are the major cause of sexual
harassment.
Related Literature
Tangri et. al., 1982. reported that a stronger male sex drive, and
men’s role as sexual initiator were the causes of sexual
harassment.
Hearn et al., 1992. postulated that sexual harassment is all about
sexual differences between males and females so that sexuality
becomes instinctive sexual drives.
Paglia, 1992. also supported this theory, stated that men are in a
constant state of sexual anxiety, living on the pins and needles of
their hormone.

23. ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY
 This theory is based on the assumption that power
and status within organization are major cause of
sexual harassment.
 Related Literature:
Tangri et al.,1982. postulated that powerful women may
harass subordinate men, and such occurrence is rare
only because women are employed in subordinate
positions.
Cleveland and Krest, 1993. explicated that various kind
of power used in organization are linked to gender and
help explain sexual harassment.

24. SEX ROLE SPILL OVER THEORY
This theory is the combination of organizational and socio cultural theory.
When the sex-ratio of an organisation is skewed (the
organisation is either male or female dominated) the sex role of
the dominant gender "spills over" the work role expectations of
the job.
 Related literature:
Kanter, 1977. suggested that the proportion of males and females
in a workplace determines sexual harassment.

25. SEX ROLE SPILL OVER THEORY…..
Related literature:
Gutek and Morasch, 1982. reported that in most cultures gender
identity is more salient than work identity and when in male
domination of work place, women enters, she treated as outsider.
Sheffy and Tindale, 1992. reported that traditionally employed
women surrounded by other women who do the same work are
less likely to report experiencing sexual harassment at work
place.

26. SOCIO-CULTURAL THEORY
 Tangri et al 1982. socio-cultural theory is
characterized by patriarchal society in which we
live.

27. FOUR-FACTOR THEORY

28. WORK PLACE (INDIAN CONSTITUTION)
Private sector
organizations
Sports
institutes,
stadiums, training
institutions
Hospitals/
Nursing
homes
Government
owned/
controlled
establishments
Dwelling place
in case of a
domestic
worker
Vocational/
Educational
Institutions

29. FORMS OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT WORK PLACE
Quid pro quo
Hostile
environment

30. QUID PRO QUO HARASSMENT
Latin word for “compensation”
 The victim is forced to choose between submission
to the sexual demands of a supervisor or the loss of
a job or job benefits
 Demanding dates
 Disciplining or firing a subordinate who ends a romantic
relationship
 Changing performance expectations after a subordinate
refuses dates

31. HOSTILE WORK ENVIRONMENT
 The activity complained of is pervasive or severe,
creating an intimidating or abusive workplace
Examples are:
 Certain sexist remarks
 Display of pornography or sexist/obscene graffiti,
 Physical contact/brushing against female employees

32. Ashraf, 1997. reported that indecent remarks, singing
obscene songs, hitting, touching or pinching in
crowded places, snatching dupatta and in some
cases even forced kissing, mailing anonymous love
letters and exhibiting male genital in front of
women.

33. RELATED LITERATURE
Benson & Thomson, 1982. Reported that 20% of the women
had been harassed by a male instructor at the university of
Berkeley while 20% of transfer students reported such
experiences at their former schools.
Gruber and Bjorn,1982. found that a substantial number of
women(25-75%) in work setting ranging from traditional
(nursing) to non traditional (the automobile industry) subjected
to harassment.
Philips and Schneider,1993. More than three quarters of (77%)
physician were harassed by their patients.

34. RL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS
 Reilly, et al. 1986. Thirty percent of the women reported
suggestive looks or gestures on the job from male staff, and 10%
from male faculty. Nearly 22% reported sexual teasing from male
staff, about 8% from male graduate assistants, and almost 13%
from male faculty. And male staff was reported to engage in
deliberate touching by 11% of the female respondents while
pressure for social contact from them was cited by almost 8% of
the women. The behavior experienced most often by males was
unwanted sexual teasing or jokes by female staff, reported by
almost 7% of the men.

35. TRENDS OF SH (UNITED STATES)
Dunwoody-Miller and Gutek (1985) found that 20 percent of California
State civil service employees reported being sexually harassed at
work in the previous 5 years from the date of the research.
Aggarwal, 1992. reported that US Federal Government employees that
42 % of women and 15 % of men were victims of overt sexual
harassment in the last two years.
McKinney, 1990. in a study of academic faculty found that 14 % of both
male and female faculty members reported sexual harassment by
other members of faculty, and another 20 % reported being sexually
harassed by Students.

36. USMSPB, 1994. In a large scale survey of 13,200
male and female Federal Government workers in
the United States found that 44 % of women and
19% of men reported sexual harassment.
Tengku Omar & Maimunah, 2000. reported that 85%
of female lawyers and 78% of male lawyers had
experienced one form of sexual harassment.

37. Cummings & Armenta, 2002. A report published by
the American Association of University Women
Educational Foundation (AAUW) on a national
survey of 2,064 public school students found that
83% of girls compared to 79% of boys reported
having experienced sexual harassment.

38. EUROPE
Dunwoody-Miller & Gutek, 1985. In United Kingdom, over 9,000
women responded to a survey on sexual harassment More than 92%
of these respondents reported that they perceived sexual harassment
as a problem whereby 9-10% respondents reported that they had
personally experienced one or more forms of unwanted sexual
attention at the workplace.
Husbands, 1992. In a study at Le Point, France found that 48 percent of
the respondents did not find a supervisor who invites a female staff
who wants a promotion, for a weekend out as an act that reflects
sexual harassment. Twenty percent of the female respondents did not
label the superior‟s behaviour as sexual harassment if he invites
female to pose nude to get a job.

39. Earle & Madek, 1993. In Germany, a poll carried out in 1990 in
Frankfurt found that 25 percent out of 9,000 women surveyed
reported sexual harassment. Another survey in 1992
disclosed that two thirds of women reported being regularly
harassed, but nearly 50 percent of their male colleagues did
not think their behaviour was offensive.
Brown, 1998. in a study of women police officers in England and
Wales found that 70 % of women police officers experienced
some form of sexual harassment at least once, while 44 % of
these experienced harassment more than once.

40. Heiskanen & Piispa, 1998. Finland, a nationally
representive Women‟s Safety study reported that
19.6% of women experienced a range of
harassment behaviours over a one year period.
Sabbadini, 1998. In Italy, 24.4% of women between
the ages of 14 and 59 reported at least one type of
sexual harassment in the last three years.

41. Jaspard, 2001. In a French National Survey on Violence
Against Women, which asked about the incidents both at
work and in public areas occurring in the last year, 15%
of the women reported some form of harassment.
Ilies et al. 2003. reported that sexual harassment was found
to be most prevalent in the military, while fewer women
in academia.

42. Human Rights Watch, 2001. also indicated that one
in four female students at the University of Natal
(Durban, South Africa) have experienced sexual
harassment from male faculty and peers.
Haruhanga, 2006. reported that 42% of women in
Makerere University in Uganda have been sexually
harassed by male faculty and peers.

43. SOUTH AFRICA
Karanja, 1981. in his study of Lagos, Nigeria found
that sexual harassment was widespread and that
the main targets for sexual pressure were the less
educated, the single and those working in low
paying jobs as typists, secretaries or petty
contractors.
Paul Nyende, 2000. found that in Uganda, 65%
women admitted having been sexually harassed
and this was mainly because women‟s jobs not
only offer low pay, little privilege and routine tasks
but also require women to serve emotional support
and be sexually attractive to men.

44. Adedokun, 2004., and Ejiogu and Onyene, 2006.
found that about 86% of male faculty and staff in
the sampled universities in Nigeria have sexually
harassed female students at one point in their
teaching career
Houreld, 2006. found that 80% of women in Nigerian
higher education institutions reported sexual
harassment as their greatest challenge in the
successful completion of their academic goals.

45. ASIA
Report on Sexual Harassment, 1996. The report by the gender
study group of the Delhi University showed that 91.7 per cent of
all the inmates of women‟s hostels and 88.2 per cent of all the
women day scholars had faced sexual harassment on the roads
and within the campus.
Rameshan, 1998. reported that forty-eight per cent of the women
lawyers surveyed stated that they had heard or experienced
remarks or jokes that were demeaning to women.

46. Samirah, 1999. In Japan sexual harassment study, data was undertaken
from 70 complainants and found that out of this, 40 had left their jobs
due to their experiences. Their harassers were mostly married men with
responsible jobs. A report compiled by the Japanese Trade Union
Confederation revealed that 40 percent of working women said that they
had experienced some form of sexual harassment. Out of this, 2 percent
reported that they were forced to have a relationship.
Parish et.al, 2006. a study on sexual harassment in China with 3,821
participants, and was nationally representative of China‟s adult
population aged 20–64. In total, 12.5% of all women and 15.1% of urban
women reported some form of harassment in the past year.

47. SEXUAL HARASSMENT ACT – REPORTED INCIDENTS’
DATA
S.No. State 2010 2011 2012 2013 (as on
10/12/2013)
Total
1 Andaman and Nicobar
Islands
0 1 0 0 1
2 Andhra Pradesh 1 3 0 1 5
3 Arunachal Pradesh 0 0 0 0 0
4 Assam 0 2 0 0 2
5 Bihar 4 3 3 5 15
6 Chandigarh 0 0 0 4 4
7 Chhattisgarh 1 0 1 1 3
8 Dadra and Nagar Haveli 0 0 0 0 0
9 Daman & Diu 0 0 0 0 0
10 Delhi 25 23 15 36 99
11 Goa 1 1 1 0 3

48. CONTINUE..
S.No. State 2010 2011 2012 2013 (as on
10/12/2013)
Total
12 Gujarat 4 1 0 8 13
13 Haryana 5 3 2 13 23
14 Himachal Pradesh 0 0 0 0 0
15 Jammu & Kashmir 1 1 0 1 3
16 Jharkhand 4 5 2 2 13
17 Karnataka 2 3 1 3 9
18 Kerala 0 0 1 1 2
19 Lakshadweep 0 0 0 0 0
20 Madhya Pradesh 10 10 9 9 38
21 Maharashtra 7 4 4 7 22
22 Manipur 0 0 0 0 0

49. CONTINUE…
S.N. State 2010 2011 2012 2013 (as on
10/12/2013)
Total
23 Meghalaya 0 0 0 0 0
24 Mizoram 0 0 0 0 0
25 Nagaland 0 0 0 0 0
26 Orissa 2 1 4 4 11
27 Pondicherry 0 0 1 0 1
28 Punjab 6 2 1 6 15
29 Rajasthan 5 14 13 10 42
30 Sikkim 0 0 0 0 0
31 Tamil Nadu 0 1 1 1 3

50. CONTINUE..
S.N
o.
State 2010 2011 2012 2013 (as on
10/12/2013)
Total
32 Tripura 0 0 0 0 0
33 Uttar Pradesh 23 20 41 34 118
34 Uttarakhand 0 1 3 0 4
35 West Bengal 3 1 0 4 8
Total 104 100 103 150 457
Source: NCW

52. Author Year Findings
Chatterjee 2001 Sexual harassment was severe for
women in the unorganized sector; while
in Central Government offices these
incidents hardly came to the forefront.
About 92 percent organizations stated
that no such incident occurred in their
offices; 60 per cent organizations
declared that they had instituted a
complaint committee, while 24% had not
formed any such committee. Very few
Indian companies had a separate and
clear policy on sexual harassment; 8 per
cent of them stated they had other cells.

53. Author Year Findings
Menon 2007 Argued that right to a safe workplace is
not the only right women aspire to, it is
one of the many that they are entitled to.
She observed that it is very difficult for
women to complain, speak openly about
sexual harassment, or seek redressal.
Ramdoss 2010 Reported that majority of women faced
hugging by the abusers (68%), 27 per
cent suffered brushing and 5 per cent
faced unwelcome touching. Women were
harassed by their colleagues (71%) and
29 per cent were abused by the
supervisors.

54. Author Year Findings
Samhita 2001 During the 1990s, the most controversial
and brutal gang rape at the workplace in
Rajasthan state of government employee
who tried to prevent child marriage as
part of her duties as a worker of the
Women Development Programme.
Patel 2002 Sexual Harassment at the Workplace
(SHW) has remained one of the central
concerns of the women's movement in
India since the early-'80s .

55. Author Year Findings
Mathew 2002 In 1997, the Supreme Court passed a
landmark judgment in the Vishakha case
laying down guidelines to be followed by
establishments in dealing with complaints
about sexual harassment.
Dalal 2003 80% of respondents revealed that SHW
exists,
49% had encountered SHW, 41% had
experienced SHW, 53% women and men
did not have equal opportunities, 53% were
treated unfairly by supervisors, employers
and co-workers, 58% had not heard of the
Supreme Court's directive of 1997, and only
20% of organisations had implemented the
Vishakha guidelines.

56. Author Year Findings
Raymond 2003 Sexual harassment is still endemic,
often hidden and present in all kinds of
organizations. The issue is of concern
for both women & the employers as
sexual harassment touches lives of
nearly 40-60 percent of working
women.
SCWSD
and ICHRL
2003 Study shows that awareness and
implementation of the Supreme Court's
guidelines is very low and there is a
need to spread awareness about the
same.

57. REPORTED CASES

58. CASES OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT (PROMINENT
NAMES)
Year Person associated Authority Organization
2001 Phaneesh Murthy Global sales head Infosysis
2004 C. Venkatraman CMD Nalco
2010 Pradeep Shrivastva Chief marketing
officer
Idea cellular
2010 David Davidar CEO Penguin Int.
2012 Gopal Kanda Promoter MDLR Airlines
2013 (Name withheld) India Retail Head Foreign Bank

59. VICTIMS
 AAUW’s own research revealed that 83 percent of girls and 79
percent of boys reported having experienced sexual harassment,
and over one in four students stated that harassment happens
“often.”
 (11 In 1993, AAUW released Hostile Hallways: The AAUW
Survey on Sexual Harassment in America's Schools, which
revealed that four out of five students in grades eight to 11 had
experienced some form of sexual harassment. In 2001, the
AAUW Educational Foundation released the follow-up report,
Hostile Hallways: Bullying, Teasing, and Sexual Harassment in
School, which found that nearly a decade later, sexual
harassment remained a major problem and a significant barrier
to student achievement in public schools. In response, AAUW
developed a resource guide, Harassment-Free Hallways (2002),
which provides guidelines and recommendations to help schools,
students, and parents prevent and combat sexual harassment.
All of these publications, including Drawing the Line, are
available at www.aauw.org/research. )

60.  National Commission for Women of 1200 women, nearly
50 per cent complained of gender discrimination and
physical and mental harassment at work. While 40 per
cent of the women said they “usually ignored” such
provocation, 3.54 per cent said they reported these to
their supervisors, 7.8 per cent to their colleagues and
1.24 per cent to the police. About 10 per cent said that
they protested against such behaviour while 9 per cent
said they warned the offenders. At least 20.17 per cent
of the respondents said that no investigation was done
on their complaints while 1.5 per cent said police
harassed them again instead of making the enquiry.

61. AWARENSEE ABOUT SUPREME COURT
GUIDELINES
Bhatnagar, 1998. reported that 84.97 % respondents
were not aware of the supreme court judgement
given in August 1997, for specific protection of
women from sexual harassment at work.

62. LEGAL FRAMEWORK
 Sexual harassment laws in most countries like
Denmark, UK, Italy, Ireland, Finland, France,
Germany, Portugal, Spain, Netherlands,
Phillippines etc. are gender-neutral.
 Workplace which may be either gender-specific
Pakistan, India
 While the other was on inclusion of provisions as
part of existing anti-sex determination or equal
opportunities frameworks (Australia).

63. LEGAL FRAME WORK (INDIAN CONTEXT)
 Procedure to be followed
on request of female employee
Incident of SHW
Internal complaint
committee/Local
complaint committee
Report of enquiry
Conciliation
Continue..

64. Report of enquiry
Action for
misconduct
No action by
employer
Punishment for
false or malicious
complaint/false
evidence
Appeal to the
court/tribunal
Allegations
proved
Allegations
not proved

65. TIMELINESS
A written complaint has to be filed by female
employee within three months of the date of
incidence
The enquiry has to be completed within 90 days
The enquiry report has to be issued within ten days
from the date of completion of enquiry

66. CONTINUE..
Employer is required to act on the
recommendations of the committee
within 60 days of receipt of enquiry report
Appeal against the decision of the
committee is allowed within 90 days of
recommendation

67. IMPORTANT ISSUES/CONCERNS
RAISED
 Gender-Neutrality
 Role of NGOs in the implementation of the
legislation
 Training of members of Complaints Committees
 Role of National and State Commissions for
Women

68. Patel, 2007. found that the main myths about eve
teasing amongst men was that women enjoyed it;
men seen it as harmless flirting; and that they also
reported that some women were ‘asking for it’ by
the way they dress.
Rogers, 2008. that Eve teasing was the way to enact
Tamil masculinity and to regain some of their status.

69. WORLD SCENARIO SH
 Despite having stringent laws on crime against women and
strict enforcement authorities, every 2 minutes, someone in
the US is sexually harassed. Sexual assault is one of the most
under reported crime with 60% still being left unreported (U.S.
Department of Justice, National Crime Victimization Survey,
2006-2010.Rape Statistics–Facts about Rape and Sexual
Assault. Available at http://www.rainn.org/statistics?gclid)
 The situation is equally worse in European Union countries.
Between 40 to 50 % of women in European Union countries
experience unwanted sexual advances, physical contacts or
other forms of sexual harassment at work (The Facts:
Violence against women and MDG compiled by
UNIFEM,2010. Available at http:/
 /www.endvawnow.org/uploads/modules/pgf/
 1328563919.)

70.  Across Asia, studies in Japan, Malaysia, the
Philippines and South Korea show that 30- 40 %
suffer workplace harassment.(compiled by
UNIFEM,2010. Available at http:/
 /www.endvawnow.org/uploads/modules/pgf/
 1328563919.

71. CONSEQUENCES OF SH
 According to data compiled by Equal Rights
Advocates, a women’s law centre in the U.S., 90 to
95% of sexually harassed women suffer from some
debilitating stress reaction, including anxiety,
depression, headaches, sleep disorders, weight
loss or gain, nausea, lowered self-esteem and
sexual dysfunction.
 In addition, victims of sexual harassment lose $4.4
million dollars in wages and 973,000 hours in
unpaid leave each year in the United States.

72.  According to WHO 2002, a women who had been
sexually harassed is 3 times more likely to suffer from
depression, 6 times more likely to suffer from post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 13 times more likely
to abuse alcohol, 26 times more likely to abuse drugs, 4
times more likely to contemplate suicide.
 Dzeich and Weiner 1984 reported three types of effect
i.e. emotional, physical and behavioural. Feeling of
powerlessness, lack of confidence and self esteem,
anger, hurt and depression etc.
 Gutek and Koss(1993) also reported the emotional,
physical and psychological damage a woman
experience from sexual harassment at work place.

73.  DeSouza and Fansler 2003.reported that female
victims of sexual harassment had higher level of
depression and anxiety than male victim.

74. PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 ILO Technical Report arising out of the Seminar
 on Action against Sexual Harassment at Work in Asia
and the Pacific (2001). Victims of sexual harassment
suffer in a variety of ways, but common physiological
effects include nausea, loss of appetite, headaches, and
fatigue, which can lead to increased absenteeism. The
trauma associated with sexual harassment can also
cause miscarriage in pregnant women. Moreover, in the
absence of adequate support systems, including
psychological counselling and medical care,
 the physiological effects of harassment can result in
chronic illness, which then
 further impairs both the victim’s ability to work and her
overall quality of life. (Sexual Harassment at the
Workplace in Nepal. p26.)

75. PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Common psychological effects of sexual
harassment include humiliation,
 shame, anger, fear, anxiety, depression, and
decreased motivation. In extreme
 cases, the resulting trauma may lead victims to
commit suicide. Without proper
 counselling, psychological suffering can lead to a
total loss of interest in work,
 or to a debilitating fear of going outside or of being
alone.

76. SOCIO-ECONOMIC EFFECTS
 A loss in concentration and hence productivity affects
opportunities for
 advancement, which in turn lowers earning capacity,
especially for those paid daily
 or on the basis of output produced. A victim who refuses
the advances of a superior
 may be fired, or feel forced to resign if management is
unsympathetic to her situation.
 Such loss of employment or a decrease in earning
power may then force her into
 economic dependence on others, placing a victim in a
precarious situation and
 exacerbating her risk of suffering other forms of gender-
based violence. (above author)

77. ON ENTERPRISES
 it damages an enterprise by weakening the bases
 upon which work relationships are built and
impairing productivity.” It also harms
 productivity by increasing “workplace tensions,
which […] may impede teamwork,
 collaboration and work performance”, before finally
resulting in increased
 absenteeism and decreased productivity. (General
Surveys on Equality in Employment and
Occupation Convention. International
 Labour Organisation. 1996.)

78. ON SOCIETIES
 sexual harassment also
 produces negative outcomes for entire societies.
Tolerance of such behaviour
 “impedes the achievement of equality between men
and women, it condones
 sexual violence[,] and…[i]t is wasteful from
economic, social and human resource
 development points of view to invest only in
selected parts of the population [as
 a result of] discrimination based on sex… (ILO
Technical Report. P20)

79.  In a period of two years, over 36,000 federal
employees quit their jobs, were transferred, were
fired because of sexual harassment. 9US.Merit
System Protection Board 1987)
 Salisbery et al 1986 reported that physical effect of
sexual harassment includes gastrointestinal-
disturbances, jaw tightness and teeth grinding,
nervousness, binge-eating, headache, inability to
sleep, tiredness, nausea, loss of appetite and
weight loss.

80.  Awassa, Ethiopia in 2007 among college faculty
and staff members on workplace abuse and sexual
harassment. female staff members, (82.2%)
reported having at least one experience of
workplace abuse within past 12 month with a
similar pattern of distribution amongst academic
and administrative staff. (Marsh J, Patel S, Gelaye
B, Goshu M, Worku A, Williams MA, et al.
Prevalence of workplace abuse and sexual
harassment among female faculty and staff. J
Occup Health 2009; 51(4): 314-22.)

81.  As an example from a high-income setting, a
national representative (online) study of students in
US middle and high schools found that out of 1002
female respondents, a majority of girls reported
experiencing some form of sexual harassment at
school during the 2010–2011 school year (18) 18.
Hill C, Kearl H. Crossing the line: sexual
harassment at school. Washington, DC, American
Association of University Women, 2011.

82.  Richman et al. who noted that 68% of female faculty
surveyed at American universities reported experiencing
workplace abuse. (Richman JA, Rospenda KM, Nawyn
SJ, et al. Sexual harassment and generalised workplace
abuse among university employees: Prevalence and
mental health correlates. Am J Public Health 1999; 89 :
358-63.)
 The result of this study are similar to reports from other
studies in western countries where the prevalence of
sexual harassment is ranging from 40% to 57%. (Carr
PL, Ash AS, Friedman R H, et al. Faculty perceptions of
gender discrimination and sexual harassment in
academia medicine. Ann Intern Med 2000; 132 : 889-
96.)

83.  the data from non-western countries differs. In Taiwan, one
year prevalence of sexual harassment was found to be 9.5%9,
and workplace abuse 25% whereas(Chen WC, Huw HG,
Kung SM, Chiu HJ, Wang JD. Prevalence and determinants of
workplace violence of health care workers in a psychiatric
hospital in Taiwan. J Occup Health 2008; 50 : 288-93.)
 in Japan10, 56% of nurses surveyed reported that they had
been sexually harassed.(Hibino Y, Ogino K, Inagaki M. Sexual
harassment of female nurses by patients in Japan. J Nurs
Scholarsh 2006; 38 : 400-5.)
 In Thailand less than 1% of nurses reported experiencing
sexual harassment(Kamchuchat C, Chongsuvivatwong V,
Oncheunjit S, Yip TW. Sangthong R. Workplace violence
directed at nursing staff at a general hospital in southern
Thailand. J Occup Health 2008; 50 : 201-7.)

84. INDIA
 cross sectional study on harassment done in Mangalore12,
out of 160 working women interviewed, about 28.8% were
found to be harassed.(Unnikrishnan B, Rekha T, Kumar G,
Reshmi B, Mithra P, Sanjeev B. Harassment among women at
workplace: A cross sectional study in coastal south India.
Indian J Commun Med 2010; 35 : 350-2.)
 in Kerala, 1000 women were interviewed about street
harassment out of which 98% said they had experienced and
90% said that it was either physical or verbal. 62% reported
that the harassment was notable on public transportation.
(New Indian Study: 98 percent of women report street
harassment. Available from: http://
www.stopstreetharassment.org/2010/12/newindian- study 98
percent of_women_report_ street_harassment. Accessed on
11th Sept. 2011.)

85.  An exploratory study was undertaken in 2005- 2006
among 135 women health workers, including
doctors, nurses, health care attendants,
administrative and other non medical staff working
in two govt. and two private hospitals in Kolkata.
Four types of experiences were reported by 77
women who had experienced 128 incidents of
sexual harassment: verbal (41), psychological (45),
sexual gestures and exposure (15) and unwanted
touch (27). (Chaudhuri P. Experiences of sexual
harassment of women health workers in four
hospitals in Kolkata, India. Reprod Health Matters
2007; 15(30) : 221-9.)

86.  (National Crime Records Bureau: Home Ministry of
India 2010.) Andhra Pradesh has reported 30.3% of
cases (3,316) followed by Uttar Pradesh 26.3%
(2,882). Andhra Pradesh has reported the highest
crime rate 4.1 as compared to the National average
of 1.0.

87.  In studies from around the world, including Africa, south Asia,
and Latin America, studies have documented that substantial
proportions of girls report experiencing sexual harassment
and abuse on the way to and from school, as well as on
school and university premises, including classrooms
lavatories and dormitories, by peers and by teachers (15,16).
 in a study among primary schools in the Machinga district of
Malawi, primary school girls reported experiencing various
types of sexual harassment and abuse at school, including
sexual comments (7.8%), sexual touch (13.5%), ‘rape’ (2.3%),
and ‘coerced or unwanted’ sex (1.3%) (17). That same study
found that teachers at 32 out of 40 schools reported knowing
a male teacher at their school who had propositioned a
student for sexual intercourse; while teachers at 26 out of 40
schools reported that a male teacher at their school had got a
student pregnant.

88.  15. Management Systems International (MSI). Are schools
safe havens for children? Examining school-related gender-
based violence. Washington, DC, United States Agency for
International Development (USAID), 2008.
 16. Wellesley Centers for Research on Women, DTS (2003).
Unsafe schools: a literature review of school-related gender-
based violence in developing countries. Washington, DC,
United States Agency for International Development (USAID),
2003.
 17. Columbia RH, Kadzamira E, Moleni C (2007). The Safe
Schools Program: student and teacher baseline report on
school-related gender-based violence in Machinga District,
Malawi. Washington, DC, United States Agency for
International Development (USAID), 2007.
http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/cross-cutting_
programs/wid/ed/safeschools.html]

89. 2006 PRATIMA CHAUDHARY
 the majority of cases of sexual harassment were
perpetrated by doctors (41 out of 129 incidents
reported), who are figures of authority in the
hospital hierarchy. Likewise, most of the
perpetrators of harassment reported by female
doctors were male doctors (26 out of 41
perpetrators), usually those holding positions of
authority. Nurses (14) and other health care
personnel, including attendants and administrative
staff, also reported harassment by doctors, though
to a significantly lesser extent. Nurses also reported
harassment by patients or their families (22).

90.  Although a large number of incidents of sexual
harassment were experienced (77/135), few
women took any formal action (27/77).
 only 27 of the 77 women experiencing harassment
made a formal complaint; Of the 27 cases reported
to a supervisor or the management, in only 10
cases was action taken.
 Notably, action was not taken in a single case in
which a doctor was implicated, but was taken in all
cases in which a non-medical staff member was
implicated. (

91.  Few respondents (20 out of 135) were aware of the
Supreme Court Guidelines on Sexual
 Harassment and none had heard of a complaints
committee for redress of complaints. (Paramita
Chaudhuri, Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
 EXPERIENCES OF WOMEN IN THE HEALTH
SECTOR Health and Population Innovation
Fellowship Programme Working Paper, No. 1(2006)

92. DEMOGRAPHIC ASSOCIATION WITH SH
 Age is another significant demographic
characteristic associated with sexual
 harassment as younger people are documented to
be more likely targets of sexually
 harassing behaviours than older people (USMSPB.
1981,1988,1995).

93. PERCEPTION ABOUT SH
 Majority of the respondents had limited perception
of sexual harassment at work place. About 66 per
cent perceived it as physical contact and advances
of sexual nature and 58 per cent as request or
demand for sexual favours. Sexually coloured
remarks was the perception of sexual harassment
stated by 44 per cent of the respondents. A large
number of respondents were not aware of indirect
behaviour of sexual nature i.e. body language.

94. BY
YUGANTAR EDUCATION SOCIETY 2004.
CIVIL LINES,
 Out of 600 working women covered by the study
224 (about 37 per cent) were the victims of sexual
harassment at work place. The incidence of sexual
harassment at work place was about 17 per cent in
organised sector and 20 per cent in unorganised
sector. It was 20 per cent in urban areas and 17 per
cent in rural areas. that about 94% of them were in
the age range of 18 to 38 years, about 71% were
highly educated and 29% were either illiterate or
educated up to primary level only

95. EFFECT ON VICTIM
 It leaves them feeling threatened, humiliated,
patronised or harassed, and creates a threatening,
intimidating work environment. In the worst cases
women have committed suicide. it affects workers’
morale it makes them less efficient.

96. EFFECT OF SH
 Gutek and Koss (1993), Reese and Lidenberg
(1999), Stockdale (1996) allude to the costs
involved both to the victim and the organization in
three areas of Somatic health, psychological health
and work outcome.
 Carothers and Crull (1984) assert sexuality has
become part of the workplace negotiation so much
that sexual favours have become a currency by
which women trade for easier jobs, promotions and
job security.

97.  According to another report published by Ain-O-shalish Kendra(ASK) on
13 th December 2010, Sexual harassment against girls and women in
Bangladesh is turning deadly , 28 women have committed suicide this
year and and another seven attempted it to escape frequent sexual
harassment.
 Decent Work for domestic workers in
 Vietnam conducted by the Institute for Family and Gender Studies in
2011
 highlighted that both male and female domestic workers were subject to
sexual
 Harassment.(Institute for Family and Gender Studies, Decent work for
domestic workers in Viet Nam, Ha Noi, 2012.
 Labour and Social Publishing House,) In fact, sexual harassment at
workplace can happen to individuals from
 all age groups, however, the risks are higher for young people aged
between 18 and
 30 years. Both students and full-time employees recognize this
characteristic. Young
 attractive women are especially at risk.

98. REASONS OF SH
 According to Ditomaso (cited in Hearn et al), sexual
harassment is a result of competition between the
sexes for domination.
 (Callagher- 1995), Pringle (cited in Hearn et al)
however have insisted that sexual harassment is
not only an individual problem but also part of an
organized expression of male power. It is one way
that women are kept out of non-traditional
occupations and re-enforce their secondary status
in the workplace. This perception is further re-
enforced by the bureaucratic set-up of most
organizations

99.  Literature reports that sexual harassment has impacted
women's selfesteem
 as well as their academic, social, and psychological
wellbeing (Ladebo, 2003;
 Mashingaidze 2006; Popovich, 1988).
 Leach, Machakanja, and Mandoga (2000) found that in
a coeducation
 school in Zimbabwe 47% of girls experienced sexual
harassment from male teachers
 and students.
 Leach et al. (2003) also
 found that 27% of girls in junior secondary schools in
Ghana have experienced forced sex and
 over 50% have also been sexually harassed.

100. INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION AND MOVES TO
STAMP
OUT SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT WORK
 International Labour Organisation: In 2003, the ILO’s
Governing body adopted a Code of practice on
workplace violence in services sectors, offering
guidance, including against sexual harassment.
 United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)
Beijing Declaration and Programme for Action The
1995 United Nations’ Women’s Conference in Beijing
 Regional Measures
 Europe The European Union’s 1991 ‘Code of Practice’
called on Member States to promote awareness of
sexual harassment and take measures against it, and a
Directive prohibiting sexual harassment was adopted in
2002.

101.  Organisation of American States ‘Inter-American
Convention on Violence Against Women’
 Over 50 countries have prohibited sexual harassment at work
through national legislation or labour codes:
 Prohibition of sexual harassment is included in the national
human rights
 legislation of three countries: Canada (Canadian Human
Rights Act), Fiji (Human
 Rights Commission Act, 1999) and New Zealand (Human
Rights Act, 1993)60. These
 statutes apply to harassment in a range of contexts, including
education and housing,
 but refer specifically to workplace harassment(D. McCann.
Sexual harassment at work: National and international
responses, Conditions of Work and
 Employment Programme, ILO, 2005.)

102.  A recent study by the American Association of
University Women, for example, found that 83% of
female and 79% of male students in grades 8
through 11 had been sexually harassed at school in
ways that interfered with their lives. One third of the
surveyed students—20% of boys and 44% of
girls—said that they fear being sexually harassed
during the school day. (Hostile Hallways: Bullying,
Teasing and Sexual Harassment in School
(American Association of University Women), 2001,
available at
http://www.aauw.org/research/girls_education/hostil
e.cfm.)

103. COPING MACHENISM
 According to Gruber (1989) avoidance behaviour
such as avoiding the harasser and ignoring
incidents of harassment is one of the most
frequently used responses to sexual harassment by
women.