Papers on "Sexual Harassment in the Workplace" and similar term paper topics

Paper #058408 :: Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
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A look at the impact of sexual harassment in the workplace.

Written in 2005; 1,029 words; 5 sources; MLA; $ 36.95

Paper Summary:

Analysis of the phenomenon of sexual harassment demonstrates that, while it is an undeniably serious problem, with laws prohibiting it being rightly intolerant, the fact remains that both an imprecise definition and the tendency of some women to use it as a weapon or leverage against male supervisors or co-workers have distorted the purpose of sexual harassment laws, negatively impacting the atmosphere of the workplace and relationships between males and females within.

From the Paper:

"Defined by the EEOC as "unwelcome sexual advances, request for sexual favours, and verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that occur" within the context of the workplace and have bearing upon employment or job status (Montoya, 1998: 71). Sexual harassment incidents, as measured in terms of complaints submitted to the EEOC, are dramatically rising. In 1990, a daily average of 17 complaints is recorded. By 1998, that number rose to 43 (Montoya, 1998: 70). Considering that extremely stringent, zero-toleration laws are operative against sexual harassment throughout the United States, such dramatic increase is rather questionable. It is all the more questionable upon consideration that the consequences of such accusations, ranging from termination of employment to financial settlements reaching millions of dollars, should have, at least in theory, functioned as a deterrent against the practice. Or, at the very least, it should have inhibited the increase of sexual harassment incidents in the workplace. The fact that these consequences do not seem to have deterred unwanted advances, signals the operation of one, or a combination, of the following factors: (a) an ignorance of those acts which constitute sexual harassment, (b) an imprecise definition of sexual harassment, with flexible and expansive boundaries; (c) the use of the sexual harassment charge as a weapon deployed by female workers against male supervisors and co-workers, for a variety of reasons. Analysis of the phenomenon will demonstrate that while sexual harassment is an undeniably serious problem, with laws prohibiting it being rightly intolerant, the fact remains that both imprecise definition and the tendency of some women to use it as a weapon/leverage against male supervisors/co-workers, has distorted the purpose of sexual; harassment laws, negatively impacting the atmosphere of the workplace and relationships between males and females within. Systematic analysis of the stated phenomenon and the failure of relevant laws to function as a deterrent compel examination of possible causes. The first of this would appear to be popular miscomprehension of what sexual harassment is, and what types of acts it comprises. The logic here is that the number of complaints is dramatically increasing consequent to ignorance of the law. As a possible explanation, this is highly unsatisfactory as the greater majority of companies, if not all, have published guidelines on sexual harassment, further spending exorbitant sums on employee training programs, designed to communicate acceptable patterns of male-female interactions in the workplace, ensuring that all company employees know the implications of the phenomenon (Long and Leonard, 1999). That, compounded with the fact that HR departments do thoroughly explicate the do's and don'ts of male-female interaction within the workplace, force us to dismiss ignorance of the law or of the meaning of sexual harassment as an explanation for the dramatic increase in complaints and lawsuits. In pursuing explanations, that of the very nature of sexual harassment as a source of the stated increase appears highly valid. As argued by Gouijon, Morestin and Previeu in "Sexual Harassment: A Social Phenomenon," American legislators, civil rights activists, feminists and labour unions have determinedly launched an intensive "anti-sexual harassment crusade," which has left the definition of sexual harassment open-ended (2001). That definition, covering everything from forcing a female co-worker into physical intimacy by explicitly naming termination as the price of refusal, to making a joke with sexual connotations, has left the door wide-open for some females to claim harassment if they have been addressed or looked at in a manner which, through the exercise of imagination, may be interpreted as sexual. In such instances, not only is the perceived victim entitled to file a formal complaint, but may launch a lawsuit against the organization, costing it millions of dollars in legal fees, public image damage, corrective publicity and, possibly, settlement (Gouijon, Morestin and Previeu, 2001). Thus, as stated in two separate researches (Gouijon, Morestin and Previeu, 2001; Long and Leonard, 1999), American law needs to more precisely define sexual harassment, effectively blocking unwarranted and unjustified charges. A more concrete and focused legal definition of sexual harassment, limiting it to supervisor/employer - employee contexts, further stipulating that employment was implicitly or explicitly threatened, should be instituted. Such "restrictive definitions" are currently operative in European countries such as France which, while exhibiting zero-tolerance towards sexual harassment, have curtailed its unjustified and unsubstantiated use, thereby reducing negative impact upon the organization and workplace atmosphere (Gouijon, Morestin and Previeu, 2001). Should the United States follow suit, it could possibly experience a reduction in sexual harassment complaints and lawsuits. The fact that the United States must review its legal definition of sexual harassment is supported by the fact that many women have confessed to using such a charge as a power tool against male co-workers/supervisors, or as a weapon for revenge against the same (McDonald, 2003). In "Manager's Journal: Whose Harassing Whom?" Marianne M. Jennings testifies to this fact, adding that the very nature of sexual harassment lawsuits, in conjunction with its open-ended definition, have effectively enabled women to use the threat of the accusation as a method of harassing male supervisors and co-workers (1998). This makes for a tense, hostile and non-productive workplace atmosphere, demanding that strictures be placed on sexual harassment lawsuits and charges (Jennings, 1998). In other words, the ease by which such a charge could be made, not only accounts for the increase in the number of complaints filed with the EEOC between 1990 to 1998 (Montoya, 1998: 70) but has had a perceptible negative effect on inter-gender workplace relations with concomitant harmful effects on organizational efficiency. While the above argument is in no way intended to undermine the seriousness of actual sexual harassment, it aims to illustrate that there need be a mechanism for limiting complaints to actual sexual harassment, effectively disabling its use as a weapon or a power-tool. Such limitation necessitates the reconsideration of the legal definition of the practice, further stipulating the conditions under which complaints can be made (harm or threat of harm to job security and/or career opportunities)."

Tags: distortion weapon male female

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