Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas. Paula Jones and Bill Clinton. Several accusers and Arnold Schwarzenegger. These are famous people involved in allegations of sexual harassment in very public cases. However, sexual harassment claims are becoming more prominent in not-sofamous cases, with corporations, including hospitals and health care institutions, sometimes paying big dollars to settle them.
What constitutes sexual harassment? An off-color joke at the water cooler? A pat on the arm? A promise of a promotion in return for sexual favors with the threat of demotion if those favors are not given?
The passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 led to a slight increase in sexual harassment charges in the workplace. Then several high-profile cases made the news. Today, as sexual harassment claims continue to rise, the courts - and employers - are taking a harder look at why sexual harassment happens and what can be done to help eliminate it.
Setting the right tone in the workplace and using good communication skills can go a long way toward minimizing the opportunities for sexual harassment, particularly in the highly charged atmosphere of health care.
Emotions and stress run high, and while the burden is generally on employers to create a system to prevent or handle sexual harassment situations, it's up to individuals to support the system.
Everyone in the workplace should be sensitive to office conduct, but ultimately the employer may be responsible, according to labor attorneys. It's important for employers to communicate their policy and to be sure every employee is aware of the policy and procedures.
In the past eight years, the number of employment discrimination claims filed in federal courts has increased 250 percent. While not all of these claims involve sexual harassment charges, a great majority of them do.
In simple terms, two types of sexual harassment claims make their way to the courts.
"Quid quo pro" (this for that) is when an employee is subjected to unwelcome sexual advances and submission to those advances is made an express or implied condition of receiving job benefits or rejection results in job detriment.
"Hostile environment" is when an employee is subjected to unwelcome sexual conduct that either affects a term or condition or privilege of employment or is so serious that it alters conditions of employment and creates an abusive environment.
The standards for assessing the viability of a sexual harassment claim have been outlined recently by the U.S. Supreme Court. Determining the validity of a claim is a labor-intensive, fact-finding process. Because the majority of complainants are women citing male harassment, many courts and legislative bodies are moving toward a "reasonable woman" standard. In other words, would a "reasonable woman" be offended by the tenor of the environment or the particular action taken by the accused offending co-worker(s)?
Another key to determining if an action is considered sexual harassment involves whether the actions were "unwelcome."
As you can see, the issue is complex. The best approach is for employers to have a written policy that details the company's response to harassment and provides avenues for employee complaints to be investigated and resolved within the workplace.
Such a policy should be distributed and regularly revisited with all employees to make it clear the company is taking a firm position about harassment.
Sexual harassment is still a gray area in many cases, but employers should err on the conservative side and investigate any concerns by employees. For the employee, check your employer's specific policies and procedures, following the proper chain of command to report concerns.
Sexual harassment can lead to a loss of confidence, productivity and workplace camaraderie. Do your part to maintain a positive atmosphere in the workplace and to minimize the opportunity for harassment to surface.