If there is a lesson or four to be learned from the scandal currently engulfing producer Harvey Weinstein, actor Kevin Spacey, comedian Louis CK and other Hollywood elite, it’s this:
- Sexual harassment/assault is an equal opportunity crime – women and men are both subject to its unwanted infliction;
- Sexual harassment/assault is an abhorrent abuse of power and privilege in the workplace or any place for that matter; and
- Perpetrators of sexual harassment/assault display an on-going pattern of predatory behaviour when left unchecked.
The public discourse that has followed these revelations is timely because it gives us an opportunity as workers, employers and a society, to reflect and re-examine our attitudes towards the sexual harassment and the impact..
In the next few weeks, expect the media spotlight to turn on agents, managers and business associates of these perpetrators. It is time to examine the role of these people in aiding, abetting and enabling this pattern of criminal behaviour (make no mistake it its criminal), to continue. Who knew? How much did they know? Why wasn’t anything said/done when the issue was discovered? Were they complicit in the commissioning of these offences?
Sexual assault and harassment in private or in public, is severely underreported because of the shame, fear and cultural/social/professional stigma surrounding it. The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) notes on its website that one in five women and one in 20 men, are subject to sexual harassment in the work place. Seventy five percent of these incidences go unreported and women who work in male-dominated industries such as construction, service-based industries where customer approval impacts their treatment by supervisors, and women in low-wage jobs are especially vulnerable.
Sexually based offences are about dominance, asserting and exploiting power over those who are socially, economically or physically vulnerable. It is abhorrent. It is not OK.
A national survey conducted by the AHRC in 2012, found that only one in five people harassed at work reported the matter. Common reasons for not reporting were that they thought it was not serious enough, the perpetrator was too senior or that life would be easier if they just kept quiet.
Sexual harassment is any unwanted, unwelcome or inappropriate behaviour that offends, humiliates or intimidates another person. Sexual harassment can take many forms – obvious or indirect, physical or verbal, repeated or one-off. As an illustration, some behaviours that constitute sexual harassment include:
- staring or leering
- unnecessary familiarity, such as deliberately brushing up against you or unwelcome touching
- suggestive comments or jokes
- insults or taunts of a sexual nature
- intrusive questions or statements about your private life
- displaying posters, magazines or screen savers of a sexual nature
- sending sexually explicit emails or text messages
- inappropriate advances on social networking sites
- accessing sexually explicit internet sites
- requests for sex or repeated unwanted requests to go out on dates
- behaviour that may also be considered to be an offence under criminal law, such as physical assault, indecent exposure, sexual assault, stalking or obscene communications.
Whilst employers cannot control how employees behave towards one another, they can regulate and enforce without prejudice, a safe work place through a rigorous policy framework that provides sanctions in such instances.
In the workplace, management and supervisors have a duty of care to all employees while at work or work organised events. Creating a safe workplace free from such behaviour goes a long way in building trust, productivity and loyalty from your most valuable resource – your employees. When employees report such incidences, employers are legally obligated to take reasonable action to reduce/eliminate the harm that such acts could foreseeably have on others. To not, would open the door to negligence claims in a court of law.
Whilst employers cannot control how employees behave towards one another, they can regulate and enforce without prejudice, a safe work place through a rigorous policy framework that provides support and sanctions in such instances.
Further reading: Sexual harassment at work data to be captured in national survey and “Biggest regret” inspires Skip Labs’ Shakshi Thakur’s sexual harassment software
Please contact Lauren Morrison at Lauren@lmhr.com.au or Mob: 0400 225 499 if you would like to learn more about how LM HR Consulting can assist your business with your HRM requirements.
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