Sexual HarassmentSexual Harassment in the WorkplaceI. DefinitionSexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when the Submission or rejection of such behavior explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's job 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: Both the victim and the harasser can be a woman or a man. The victim does not have to be of the opposite sex. In the case of Oncale v. Sundowner, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled this month that same-sex claims are covered by the law. The harasser may be the victim's supervisor, an agent of the employer, a supervisor in another field, or a co-worker. , or a non-employee. The victim does not have to be the person being harassed, but can be anyone affected by the offensive behavior.¨ Unlawful sexual harassment can occur without economic harm or termination of employment to the victim. The harasser's conduct must be unwelcome. It is becoming increasingly rare to find the traditional allegation of “quid pro quo” in matters of sexual harassment. The current trend is towards a “hostile work environment” which can be much more difficult for the employer to manage. The EEOC considers the following factors when determining whether or not an environment is sexually hostile: Whether the conduct was verbal or physical or both. How often it was repeated. ? perpetrated the harassment and whether the harassment was directed against more than one person. No single factor has an influence, but an assessment is made based on all the circumstances.II. Concerning employeesIt is helpful if the victim directly informs the harasser that the behavior is not welcome and must stop. However, a victim of harassment does not always need to directly confront their harasser, as long as their conduct demonstrates that the harasser's behavior is unwelcome. The victim must...... middle of paper ...... the employer will be responsible for whether or not it encourages workers to form relationships that could go wrong and cause problems at work later. These are complicated problems and there are no simple answers. Relationships develop all the time in work areas and always will. On a personal level, before you get involved with someone at work, there are consequences to consider. Again, there have been many successful marriages so it's not necessarily taboo. If you are in a management position, you must be prepared to deal with the complications that can arise when one of these relationships deteriorates and affects job performance. For example, Michael's boss could have handled the situation better. He actually made the decision to transfer Mary. Michael only recommended the transfer. Maybe he should have told Michael that he had to be the one to leave. As the political makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court changes and the decisions that determine what constitutes sexual harassment change, HR leaders must be prepared to adapt and change with these swings. Sexual harassment is just one of many issues that need to be addressed..