A survey by the TUC reported that more than half of women say that they have been sexually harassed at work and most admit to not reporting it. Rebecca Wilson, Partner at leading law firm Tollers, considers the options.
A TUC survey of 1,500 women showed that 52 per cent cited the problem, a third had been subjected to unwelcome “jokes’ and a quarter experienced unwanted touching. This made women feel ashamed and frightened said TUC head Frances O’Grady. Employers have a duty to protect their employees if they are made aware of sexual harassment.
Sexual harassment occurs where the perpetrator engages in conduct of a sexual nature, that conduct is unwanted by the victim and the conduct has the purpose or effect of violating the victim’s dignity or creating an environment that is intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive to the victim.
If you are an employee and you feel like you are suffering from sexual harassment at work, we suggest you should act as quickly as possible. Tell your manager what is happening, this can be done verbally but also documented in writing. You should also talk to your personnel department or trade union. Make sure that you keep a diary of the incidents including the time, date and location and who was involved and anyone that could be a witness. If the informal process is unsuccessful then raise a formal written complaint to your employer. Remember it is not just women who can be the victims of sexual harassment.
If your company doesn’t have a formal grievance process you can look on the ACAS website for a process to be followed. Individuals could be held personally liable in an Employment Tribunal. In any event it is not behaviour that should be allowed to continue and you have the right to be kept safe from this sort of behaviour in the work place so don’t just ignore it.
We encourage employers to be approachable when dealing with this issue and ensure they follow a proper procedure when it comes to sexual harassment. Policies should be in place showing a zero tolerance for sexual harassment, may mean that the perpetrator becomes personally liable at tribunal stage, therefore protecting the employer. Employers may also be able to dismiss staff guilty of sexual harassment on the grounds of gross misconduct.
Tollers are here to help, we offer a Tollers HR package which would include supplying you with policies and procedures where necessary.
Talk to Tollers for any of your employment related needs. We’re HeRe For You. See the website at www.tollers.co.uk or call 01604 258558.
