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  Fact Sheet: Sexual Harassment Discrimination

                      
                        

          
          
                        Fact Sheet:  Sexual Harassment Discrimination
            

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    عربي (Arabic)简体中文 (Chinese, Simplified)繁體中文 - Chinese (Traditional)EnglishKreyòl Ayisyen (Haitian Creole)한국어 (Korean)Русском (Russian)Español (Spanish)Tagalog (Tagalog)Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)فارسی (Persian. Farsi)پښتو (Pashto)
              Issuing Authority
          

  This technical assistance document was issued upon approval of the Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
        

  OLC Control Number
                                              EEOC-NVTA-0000-2


        

  Concise Display Name
                                              Fact Sheet:  Sexual Harassment Discrimination


        

  Issue Date
                                              01-15-1997


        

  General Topics
                                              Harassment, Sex/Pregnancy


                

  Summary
                                              This document provides information regarding what constitutes sexual harassment and the Title VII standards for employer liability.


        

  Citation
                                              Title VII, 29 CFR Part 1601, 29 CFR Part 1604


        

  Document Applicant
                                              Employees, Employers, Applicants, HR Practitioners


        

  Previous Revision
                                              No


        Disclaimer
          

  The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the public in any way. This document is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies.Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII applies to
employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local governments. It also applies to employment agencies and to labor organizations, as well as to the federal government.

Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes
with an individual's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.

Sexual harassment can occur in a variety of circumstances, including but not limited to the following:

The victim as well as the harasser may be a woman or a man. The victim does not have to be of the opposite sex.

The harasser can be the victim's supervisor, an agent of the employer, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker, or a non-employee.

The victim does not have to be the person harassed but could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.

Unlawful sexual harassment may occur without economic injury to or discharge of the victim.

The harasser's conduct must be unwelcome.It is helpful for the victim to inform the harasser directly that the conduct is unwelcome and must stop. The victim should use any employer complaint mechanism or grievance system available.

When investigating allegations of sexual harassment, EEOC looks at the whole record: the circumstances, such as the nature of the sexual advances, and the context in which the alleged incidents occurred. A determination on the
allegations is made from the facts on a case-by-case basis.

Prevention is the best tool to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace. Employers are encouraged to take steps necessary to prevent sexual harassment from occurring. They should clearly communicate to employees that sexual harassment will
not be tolerated. They can do so by providing sexual harassment training to their employees and by establishing an effective complaint or grievance process and taking immediate and appropriate action when an employee complains.

It is also unlawful to retaliate against an individual for opposing employment practices that discriminate based on sex or for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or litigation
under Title VII.Return to top

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