Sexual Harassment is NOT Tolerable Essay -- Sexual Harassment in the Wo

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sexual harassment can be defined as unwelcome sexual advances, wishes for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment when submission to or rejection of this conduct clearly or completely affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work routine or creates a threatening, antagonistic or unpleasant work environment (EEOC, 2002). The victim or harasser can either be a man or a woman, and sexual harassment is not always targeted to members of the opposite sex. Sufferers of sexual harassment in the place of work can be subject to fear or anxiety, lower efficiency, a higher level of stress and substance abuse (EEOC, 2002). Quid pro quo harassment is when employment or employment decisions for an employee are based on that employees’ reception or dismissal of unwanted sexual behavior (EEOC, 2002). An example cited by Paul is that of Valerie Craig, an employee of Y & Y Snacks, Inc. She had joined some co-workers and her supervisor for drinks after work one day in July of 1978. Her supervisor drove her home and anticipated that they become more intimately familiar. She refused his request for sexual relations, upon which she was fired after ten days from the incident. She soon filed a complaint of sexual harassment with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and the case wound its way through the courts. Craig won, the company was held accountable for damages, and she received back pay, return to work, and an order barring Y & Y from taking negative action against her in the future (Paul, 1998). Sexual harassment in the workplace is not tolerable in spite of the powe... ...d need for an understanding of behaviors, legal environment, social context and educational systems, which exist in the countries in which modern organizations operate. The outcome of this effort should be the development of not only a pluralistic organization, but also one with a multicultural workforce from the top ranks all the way to lowest ranks (UMC, 2007). Works Cited EEOC, E. E. (2002). Facts about sexual harrasment. available at http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/fs-sex.html retrieved on 31-10-11 at 12:00 am. Goodman, E. (1991). The Reasonable Woman Standard. Boston Globe. Paul, E. F. (1998). Bared Buttocks and Federal Cases. Society , 352-355. UMC, U. o.-C. (2007). Power And Sexual Harassment -- Men And Women See Things Differently. Science Daily available at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070403184604.htm retrieved on 1-11-11 at 7:00 am.