Legal Definitions - sexual harassment

Sexual harassment is a type of discriminationbased on sex that is illegal under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), sexual harassment occurs when:

• Someone makes unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors
• Someone engages in other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature
• Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual's employment
• Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual
• Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's work performance by creating an intimidating, hostile, or sexually offensive work environment

It's important to note that both the victim and the harasser can be of any gender, and the victim does not have to be of the opposite sex. The harasser can be a supervisor, co-worker, or someone outside of the organization, such as a client or customer.

Here are some examples of behavior that could be considered sexual harassment:

• A supervisor repeatedly asks an employee out on a date, even after the employee has said no
• A co-worker makes sexual comments or jokes to another co-worker, even after being asked to stop
• An employee is promised a promotion in exchange for sexual favors
• A customer makes sexual comments or gestures to an employee
• An employee is subjected to unwanted touching or physical contact

These examples illustrate how sexual harassment can take many different forms, and can involve different types of people in different types of relationships. It's important to remember that sexual harassment is never okay, and that victims have the right to report it and seek help.