What is sexual harassment?
Sexual harassment is unwelcome behavior that happens to you because of your sex. Some types of behavior that can be considered sexual harassment are:
- Unwelcome sexual advances
- Request for sexual favors, or
- Verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature
Sexual harassment in the workplace can be against the law when:
- Submitting to or rejecting this conduct is used as the basis for employment decisions or is made a condition of employment. This is also sometimes called "quid pro quo" harassment, or harassment resulting in a "tangible employment action."
- The conduct is sufficiently severe or pervasive that it creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment. This is called hostile environment harassment.
Which federal law(s) cover sexual harassment?
Although many federal and state laws do not specifically define sexual harassment or make it illegal, courts have found that sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination which violates the laws against sex discrimination in the workplace.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a federal law that protects individuals from discrimination based upon sex. This law makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate against individuals because of their sex in hiring, firing, and other terms and conditions of employment, such as promotions, raises, and other job opportunities.
The laws of most states also make it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sex, and some states specifically make sexual harassment against the law.
Who is covered by the law?
Title VII covers all private employers, state and local governments, and educational institutions that employ 15 or more individuals. These laws also cover private and public employment agencies, labor organizations, and joint labor management committees controlling apprenticeship and training.
Many states also make it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sex; some even require a fewer number of employees for harassment claims than are required for other types of discrimination claims.
What types of conduct are considered sexual harassment?
Many different kinds of conduct that are of a sexual nature may be sexual harassment, if the behavior is unwelcome and if it is severe or pervasive. However, courts have resisted adopting what they consider a workplace "code of conduct" or list of behavior that is automatically considered to be sexual harassment. As a result, if the conduct is not unwelcome or not severe or pervasive, courts will not necessarily consider each type of conduct listed below to be sexual harassment.
Some examples of conduct that may be sexual harassment:
- Verbal or written conduct:
Comments about clothing, personal behavior, or your body; sexual or sex-based jokes; requesting sexual favors or repeatedly asking you out; sexual innuendoes; telling rumors about your personal or sexual life; threatening you - Physical conduct:
Rape or assault; impeding or blocking your movement; inappropriate touching of your body or clothing; kissing, hugging, patting, stroking - Nonverbal conduct:
Looking up and down your body; derogatory gestures or facial expressions of a sexual nature; following or stalking you - Visual displays:
Posters, drawings, pictures, screensavers or e-mails of a sexual nature
I think I'm being sexually harassed at work. What should I do?
When dealing with sexual harassment, there is no one best thing to do, because every situation is different. However, there are two important things to remember, as they affect your ability to pursue legal action should you decide to in the future.
- Say no. One legal requirement for sexual harassment is that the conduct be "unwelcome." Make sure the harasser knows that you consider his or her conduct to be unwelcome. Tell the person that his or her behavior offends you. Firmly refuse all invitations for dates or other personal inaction outside of work. Don't engage in sexual banter or flirt back in response, or otherwise send mixed signals. Direct communication, whether verbal or in writing, is better than ignoring the behavior and hoping it will go away.
- Report harassment to your employer. It is very important that you report the harassment because your employer must know or have reason to know about the harassment in order to be legally responsible for a co-worker, client or customer's sexually harassing conduct. Tell your supervisor, your human resources department or some other department or person within your company who has the power to stop the harassment. It is best to notify them in writing, and to keep a copy of any written complaint you make to your employer. Describe the problem and how you want it fixed. This creates a written record of when you complained and what happened in response to it. If there is a policy employees are supposed to follow when reporting harassment, you should follow the policy to the fullest extent possible. While you may not think complaining will do any good, your company may later claim it would have stopped the harassment if it had known about it, so reporting the conduct is very important to show that the company was aware of the harassment.
Other strategies you may also want to try at this point:
- Write it down. As soon as you experience the harassment, start writing down exactly what happened. Be as specific as possible: write down dates, places, times, and possible witnesses to what happened. If possible, ask coworkers to also write down what they saw or heard, especially if the same thing is happening to them too. Others may read this written record at some point, so be as accurate and objective as possible. Do not keep the record at work, but at home or in some other safe place where you will have access to it in case something suddenly happens at work.
- Keep your work records. A harasser may try to defend him or herself by attacking your job performance. Keep copies of any records of your work performance, including copies of your performance evaluations and any memoranda or letters documenting the quality of your work. If you do not have copies of relevant documents, try to gather them (by legitimate means only). In some states and/or according to company policy, you are allowed to review your personnel file, so you should review your file if that is allowed. You should either make copies of relevant documents or take detailed notes of what is in the file, if you are not allowed to copy the contents.
- Talk to others. If you can do so safely, talk to other people at work about the harassment. You may find witnesses, allies, or others that have been harassed by the same person or who would be willing to help support you. Tell supportive friends, family members, and colleagues about the abuse. Telling others about the harassment not only can give you much needed support, but it can also be important evidence later.
For more information on sexual harassment, see our site's sexual harassment page:
