Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
Added on 2021-06-16
19 Pages5316 Words20 Views
Leadership Management
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Sexual Harassment in the WorkplaceTHE HRM PRACTICES IN MANAGING AND PREVENTING SEXUAL HARASSMENT INTHE WORKPLACENameUniversityCourseTutorDate1
Sexual Harassment in the WorkplaceAbstractSexual harassment occurs in the workplace and the Anti‐Discrimination Act and commonwealth sexual discrimination act were adopted to control and prevent the prevalence of sexual harassment at workplace. The two bodies have raised awareness of the problem in the organisation through campaigns and investigations done into companies that have sexual harassment complaints. Organizations have also come up with policies and procedures to manage and prevent the occurrence of sexual harassment in the workplace. Women have reported high number of cases than men. It is noted that most men do not speak up in instances of sexual harassment with fear of being labeled weak which is perceived by the society as no masculine. Different organizations have set up training and created awareness of the sexual harassment in the workplace for it to be safe for all workers to perform their tasks without fear ofvictimization.1.0.IntroductionSexual harassment has existed in the workplace with the presence of both the sexes, despite laws in place to prevent it. It is not a new phenomenon (McDonald 2012, p. 8). The past decades have seen the entry of more women in the workplace and taking up occupations previously monopolized by males. It has led to the increase in the prevalence of conflict between the genders. The conflicts led to the development of bounds of acceptable behaviors at work. Sexual harassment can include persons of the same sex, though the most reported cases involve females harassed by males (McDonald & Dear 2009, p. 42). Most accounts of sexual harassment involvephysical assault. The harassment is not easily identified and are more subtle. Men have also been victims of sexual harassment though they rarely report the cases. The report explores the limitations of the job behaviors. 2
Sexual Harassment in the WorkplaceAccording to Hill and Kearl (2011, p. 5), sexual harassment involves physical or verbal conduct of a sexual nature, sexual advances, images displaying sexually explicit materials. The sexual harassment therefore refers to unwanted attention or conduct of sexual nature towards an individual. It can occur at the workplace or at a person level.Sexual harassment takes different forms in the workplace. A wide range of behaviors can be classified as sexual harassment (Cortina & Berdahl 2012, p. 472). Sexual harassment is classifiedinto two categories: the hostile or offensive working environment and quid pro quo harassment. A hostile or offensive working environment refers to when no benefits are offered in exchange for sexual favors, and the victim is mistreated daily. The mistreatment includes subjection to unwanted sexual attention, inappropriate jokes or stories of sexual nature (Shingles & Smith 2011, p. 104). The quid pro quo harassment involves when a manager or employer offers an employee a benefit, such as an increase in salary, or job promotion in exchange for sexual favors.Cortina and Berdahl (2010, p. 432) denote that subordinate staffs are harassed by those in higher positions in the organization. There are cases and evidence that coworkers, customers, clients have others to exert authority and gain favors (Thomas 2014, p. 156). Organizations face a lot of challenges in implementing corrective actions including variations in understanding of what sexual harassment constitutes and the need to protect the confidentiality of the affected parties (Klein, Apple, & Kahn 2011, p. 96). In a workplace environment, employees are reluctant to file a formal complaint due to stigmatization that comes with the sexual harassment and fear of confidentiality (McDonald 2012, p 7).3
Sexual Harassment in the Workplace The HR practitioners and managers have made efforts to implement effective mechanisms to handle sexual harassment at work and employees are expected to file complaints through the internal process within the organization. Employees are held liable under antidiscrimination and employment laws when they do not take the necessary steps required to address the sexual harassment incidents (Saunders & Easteal 2013, p. 124).Sexual harassment is framed as an individual problem and not with causes and consequences at asystematic level limiting the response of the organization to the sexual harassment at a workplace(McDonald, Charlesworth & Cerise 2013, p.282). It is also not viewed as normal misconduct andinjustice in a workplace as it is developed from other perspectives such as the Anti‐Discrimination Act which advocates against sexual harassment. There are laws enacted to prevent the sexual harassment and have a workplace safe for all the employees. Anti‐Discrimination Act and Commonwealth sexual discrimination act formed to prevent these behaviors at work place. The articles describe HRM policies, procedures, and practices put in place by the organization aimed at preventing, managing and responding to sexual harassment in the workplace. It elaborates the framework used by Caltex Australia to manage and prevent sexual harassment in the organization.Caltex Australia is the leading oil refining and marketing company most admired for its people, Partnership, and performance. Caltex was opened in the 1950s and 1960s, where it competed with Ampol in the service station arena and oil product marketing industry. Both the companies merged to become the largest refiner-marketer in Australia in 1995. The company operates independently with all its decisions made by the management and the board in Australia. Caltex Australia is listed in Australia Securities Exchange (ASX) with around 3500 employees across the country.4
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