As increasing numbers of women have entered the work place during recent decades, a relatively new phenomenon, sexual harassment, has become more commonplace. Sexual harassment is now a common occurrence in business as women and men seek to together in an environment that does not cross lines of propriety. The result is a confusing and sometimes contradictory work place where employees and employers try to find ways to eliminate sexual harassment while building a team atmosphere where diversity is recognized and cultivated. This research examines the issue of sexual harassment and ways in which companies are approaching the problem.
Harassment may consist of telling dirty jokes, having managers comment on their personal appearance, or the more straightforward threat of having an intimate relationship with the boss or losing a job--or some other desired result. In these cases, women can bring suit against the company, but there is the difficult question of what constitutes sexual harassment, and what does not. In a case in Florida, a judge ruled that pornographic posters did contribute to a hostile work environment. However, in Los Angeles, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) brought a lawsuit against the Fire Department, which held that a ban on a captain's reading of Playboy violated his First Amendment rights--the ACLU had applauded the case in Florida (Kruger, 1995).
So-called quid pro quo harassment, where a supervisor demands sexual favors in exchange for a job benefit, is clearly sexual harassment and can be identified in an employee handbook as such. Such measures can help protect a company and can help employees understand the policies of the company. However, sexual jokes can be taken one way by some women, and another way by other women, with the result that some women are offended and consider this harassment, while other women are not offended and would not consider the jokes in the same way (Mooty, 2002...