Steps Women Can Take If They Are Experiencing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
By: Triana Arnold James
Tags: Georgia, Politics, Triana Arnold James, Sexual Harassment, Military

Steps Women Can Take If They Are Experiencing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

There been a greater spotlight on sexual harassment in the workplace in the last few years. Even though Title VII of the Federal Civil Rights Act makes sexual harassment and discrimination illegal it still is rampant among employers in the US. The advocacy group Stop Street Harassment found in a study that 81% of women experience some form of sexual harassment at work. If you have experienced sexual harassment at work, you can file a claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or EEOC to hold your employer accountable for violating the Civil Rights Act.

The EEOC often works with states to impose state level penalties as well as Federal penalties. Most states have a “work share” agreement with the EEOC where the EEOC shares all information contained in a claim against an employer in that state.

What You Can Do if You’re a Victim

If you have experienced sexual harassment at work, you can fight back and help ensure that no one else has to go through what you have gone through. You can file a complaint with the EEOC and state authorities.

You can fight back against sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. Not sure if what you’ve experienced really counts as sexual harassment? The most common types of workplace sexual harassment include:

Not being promoted because of your gender, or being told you must perform sexual favors in order to be promoted.

• Sexually charged comments in the workplace.

• Demeaning or dehumanizing comments about your, or women in general.

• Bullying comments about you, or women in general.

• Not being paid the same as men doing the same job you are doing with equal qualifications.

• Being exposed to sexually provocative or explicit images, words, or graphics in the workplace.

If you have experienced any of these types of incidents at work you can and should file a complaint against your employer for sexual harassment.

The best way to start is to get a copy of your company’s written sexual harassment policy. You may already have a copy in your employee handbook. Read it thoroughly. Write a log of every incident that you’ve gone through that violates that policy. Write down the date and time of the incident and who was involved as well as a brief summary of what happened.

After you have a complete list make several copies of it, including a digital copy that is stored on a personal computer or USB drive and not on your company’s computer. Send copies of your log to the HR department and to your boss. If they don’t stop the harassment then file a complaint with the EEOC.

Don’t wait too long to file a complaint. You must file within either 180 days or 300 days depending on the type of company that you work for. After that you could lose your right to file a complaint against the employer.

Filing A Claim For Sexual Harassment

It’s vital to your complaint that you include as much evidence of harassment as you can. Screenshots, photos, witness statements, text messages, and any other evidence that you can find will help support your claim.

Penalties For Sexual Harassment

If the EEOC finds that your employer has engaged in sexual harassment, they can face criminal penalties as well as state and Federal penalties. If you were denied a promotion or pay as part of the harassment you may receive a promotion or a lump sum of money as compensation.

Triana Arnold James, President GA NOW

www.georgia-now.org

Resources:

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act: https://www.employmentlawhelp.org/sexual-harassment/title-vi

Filing A Complaint: ihttps://www.employmentlawhelp.org/sexual-harassment/email-complain

Evidence: thttps://www.employmentlawhelp.org/sexual-harassment/evidence-harassment-clai

EEOC Field Office: mhttps://www.eeoc.gov/field-office/atlanta/location