Sexual harassment is a form of discrimination that happens in familiar environments far too often. It frequently occurs in our place of employment. It’s a subject that needs to be taught to all employers, employees, and other individuals in the work place on how to prevent and counter these activities. Employers should implement and strictly enforce a guideline which directly informs all parties of the consequences if not followed. Employees should understand that they should have no fear of harassment since the policy is there to back them up. In doing so, this should make the environment much more comfortable for every individual since there is a policy in place to support them in a situation that may arise.
Moran (2008) wrote that “sexual harassment consists of the request for sexual favors as well as touching, joking, commenting, or distributing material of a sexual nature that an individual has not consented to and finds offensive” (p. 261). It’s a form of unlawful sex discrimination. Under federal law in the United States, sexual harassment is unwanted verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature that occurs in the workplace or in an educational setting under certain conditions. Such behavior is illegal if it creates an environment that is hostile or intimidating, if it interferes with a person’s work or school performance, or if acceptance of the harasser’s behavior is made a condition of employment or academic achievement (Microsoft Student, 2007).
The differences in sexual harassment and gender discrimination are simple—sexual harassment normally involves the request for sexual acts. Gender discrimination generally singles out individuals for their gender roles. For example, a man may not want a woman to work alongside him because the type of work may be considered “a man’s job”. Also, some feel like women are more emotional and may not be able to