5. Growing Awareness: Anita Hill vs. Clarence Thomas
1991 court hearings against Supreme Court Nominee
Clarence Thomas
Controversy ensued
Thomas still confirmed as Supreme Court judge, but
raised awareness and encouraged women to come forward
with claims of harassment
6. Sexual Harassment Defined
Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other
verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
● Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term
or condition of an individual's employment, or
● Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as a
basis for employment decisions affecting such individual, or
● Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with
an individual's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or
offensive working environment.
-U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Committee
7. Simply Stated, Sexual Harassment is...
Unwelcome verbal, visual, non-verbal or
physical conduct of a sexual nature or
based on someone’s sex that is severe or
pervasive and affects working conditions
or creates a hostile work environment.
-Equal Rights Advocates
8. Two Types of Sexual Harassment
1. Quid Pro Quo
2. Hostile Environment
-Society of Human Resource Management
9. Quid Pro Quo
Most commonly recognized form of sexual harassment in the
work place
Occurs when:
Benefits are contingent on providing of sexual behaviors
-or-
The rejection of providing sexual behaviors results in a
consequence such as tangible employee detriment
10. Hostile Environment
Harassment is sexual or other discriminatory conduct that is so
severe and pervasive that it interferes with an individual’s
ability to perform their job; creates an intimidating, offensive,
threatening or humiliating work environment; or causes a
situation where a person’s psychological well-being is adversely
affected.
-Society of Human Resource Management
11. Behaviors
Sexual Harassment victims can be men and women at any level of employment
Behaviors include:
● Actions must be unwelcome or intimidating and create a threatening or
hostile environment including:
○ Physical behaviors
○ Using crude or offensive language
○ Using degrading terms that refer to gender or sexual orientation
○ Sending crude emails
○ Spreading inappropriate rumors
- National Association of School Psychologists
12.
13. Identifying Behaviors
Identifying sexual harassment can be tricky
Harassers have their side of the story
The opinion of the harassed, not the harasser, is most important
Important to consider context of situation
- National Association of School Psychologists
14. Stoplight Activity
Red = STOP
Clearly a sexual harassment situation
Yellow = Slow Down
Situation is possibly crossing the line
Green = Go!
Situation is appropriate - Secretary of Navy Instruction
15. Prevention
Clear anti-harassment policies are communicated to all employees
Employees should:
● be aware of what can be considered harassment
● know what steps to take if it occurs
Employers must:
● Educate
● Discipline
● Provide support/protection
- Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights
16. Consequences
● Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is
responsible for investigating charges of job
discrimination related to sex discrimination
● Required change in workplace practices and behavior
● Employer and offender both legally responsible
-U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Committee
17. Consequences
Common Consequences of Sexual Harassment in the
workplace:
● Conference/probation/citation
● Termination
● Law suits
● Jail Time
- Smallbusinesses.chron.com
18. What to do
● Speak up
● Complete a sexual harassment complaint form
● Keep a written record of the incidents
● Tell someone you trust
● Identify an advocate or counselor
● Write a letter to harasser
● Complain to organizations such as Equal Employment Opportunities
Commission
● Contact the police and/or file a lawsuit
- Equal Opportunities Commission
19.
20. Activity - Group Scenarios
With your groups, read through the scenarios
and decide how the second person will react
to the scenarios
Groups will then present their scenarios and
give a brief description for why they chose the
second person to react as they did
21. Summary
Sexual harassment is unwelcome behavior that creates a hostile
work environment
Two types: Quid pro quo and hostile environment
There are a wide range of behaviors
Opinions of the harassed outweigh opinions of the harasser
22. Summary Continued
Policies have to be communicated to all employers and
employees
Consequences of sexual harassment can range from
citations to jail time
It is important to report sexual harassment incidents and
also to tell someone you trust about the situation
23. After today you should be able to...
Understand the definition and be able to state the EEOC
definition
Identify behaviors
List possible consequences
Discuss what to do if a situation occurs
