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Sexual Harassment Definition |
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Any unwanted
sexual advances |
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A request for
sexual favors |
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Verbal or
physical conduct of a sexual nature which |
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Alarms or
annoys you |
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Interferes
with your privacy |
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Creates an
intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment |
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King County
Sexual Assault Resource Center, Renton WA |
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Examples of Sexual Harassment: |
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Telling
sexually offensive jokes |
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Questioning or
commenting on someone’s sexuality |
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Displaying
sexually explicit pictures |
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Spreading
sexual rumors |
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Making
comments about someone’s clothing or body |
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Repeatedly
propositioning someone when they have said no |
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Standing or
rubbing against a person |
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Making
suggestive gestures or noises |
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Extorting
sexual cooperation |
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What the law says about sexual harassment |
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In the workplace: Title VII
Guidelines |
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In 1980, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
(EEOC) issued guidelines on what constitutes sexual
harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964. Title VII prohibits employment discrimination on the
basis of color, national origin, and sex; therefore,
sexual harassment is job discrimination. These rules guide
the courts in their rulings on sexual harassment in the
workplace. |
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Title VII
prohibits sexual harassment of employees |
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Employers are
responsible for the actions of their agents and
supervisors |
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Employers are
responsible for the actions of all employees if the
employer knew or should have known about the sexual
harassment |
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Types of workplace harassment |
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Quid pro quo harassment is when a supervisor asks for
sexual favors and the victim declines resulting in he/she
being fired, demoted, or retaliated against. Threat of
these actions by the supervisor also constitutes quid pro
quo harassment. The law also applies if a victim is denied
a job because she rejected sexual advances. |
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An employer is liable for sexual harassment by a
supervisor in its employ. The victim does not have to
prove that the employer had knowledge of the harassment in
cases of quid pro quo harassment. |
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Environment harassment is a hostile work environment that
interferes with a victim’s work performance. A hostile
work environment may be perpetrated by a supervisor,
co-worker, or a non-employee (such as a customer).
Environmental harassment includes verbal comments,
displays of sexually explicit materials and unwanted
sexual contact. Seventy-five percent of all incidents of
sexual harassment fall into the category of hostile work
environment. |
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To be illegal, environmental harassment must be severe and
pervasive; an isolated remark or event is not enough to
constitute a case of sexual harassment. The incident must
also be unwelcome. |
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Employers may be liable for a hostile work environment if
they knew or should have known about the sexual
harassment. |
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In schools: Title IX
Guidelines |
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Students are protected from sexual harassment by Title IX
of the 1972 Education amendments, administered by the
Office for Civil Rights (OCR). OCR defines sexual
harassment as “verbal or physical conduct of a sexual
nature, imposed on the basis of sex, by an employee or
agent of a recipient of federal funds”. Again, there are
no specific guidelines for what actions constitute sexual
harassment. |
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Title IX protects students from unlawful sexual harassment
in all of a schools programs or activities whether they
take place in the facilities of the school, on a school
bus, at a class training program sponsored by the school
at another location, or elsewhere. Title IX protects both
male and female students from sexual harassment,
regardless of who the harasser is. |
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Under federal law, any school receiving federal money is
required to have a policy against sexual discrimination
and notify employees, students, and parents of it. |
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Statistics |
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In 1996, 15,342 complaints of sexual harassment were made
to the EEOC, either directly or through state and local
reporting agencies, up dramatically from the almost 5,600
complaints reported in 1990. (EECO) |
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In a survey of 9,000 clerical and professional women, 92%
of the respondents had experienced overt physical
harassment, sexual remarks and leering, with the majority
regarding this behavior as a serious problem at work.
(Kathleen McKinney, Sexual Coercion) |
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Two out of three women surveyed in the military said they
had been sexually harassed. (Women’s Legal Defense Fund) |
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In an AAUW survey of eight randomly selected high schools
in North Dakota 83% of boys and 93% of girls reported
experiencing sexual harassment. (Classrooms & Courtrooms:
Facing Sexual Harassment in K-12 Schools) |
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national study of 222,653 students grade 6-12 found that
81% of girls and 76% of boys reported experiencing sexual
harassment in school. (USA Weekend, September 8, 1996) |
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For further information,
resources materials, etc. contact: |
ND Council on Abused Women’s Services/
Coalition Against Sexual Assault
418 East Rosser Avenue, #320
Bismarck, ND 58501-4046
888-255-6240 or 701-255-6240
[Email]
US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
1801 L Street N.W.
Washington, DC 20507
220-663-4900
[Website]
Hostile Hallways
AAUW Educational Foundation Research
Department RR.INT
1111 Sixteenth St. N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
[Website]
Sexual Harassment Resources
[Website]
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