Sexual Harassment Culture

Introduction:

Sexual harassment is an unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature. Harassment do not have to be of a sexual nature, however, can include offensive remarks about a persons sex. A victim of sexual harassment can be a man, woman or even a child. The victim can be of the same sex as the harasser. The harasser can be a supervisor, co-worker, other Department employee, or a non-employee who has a business relationship with the Department. The percentage of women being harassed is 85% while guys are 15%. These sexual harassment actions may include sexual pranks, or repeated sexual teasing, jokes, or suggestion, in person or through e-mail. Verbal abuse of any sexual

“These shared values have a strong influence on the people in the organization and dictate how they dress, act, and complete their jobs. A company’s culture is its basic personality, the essence of how its people work and interact. Culture is the self-sustaining pattern of behavior, which determines how things are achieved. (How to Improve the Emerging Culture of Sexual Harassment, 2017)”. In the case of sexual harassment, corporate culture is to be blamed, due to the fact that most sexual harassment case happens in the work force. Sexual harassment surrounded in corporate cultures as a significant cultural function. Workplace culture is composed of instinctive, repetitive habits and emotional responses, which cannot be replicated. They are also constantly evolving and self-renewing because what people think, feel, and believe is reflected and shaped by the way they conduct their business. “Formal efforts to change a culture rarely manage to get to the heart of what motivates people. It also is extremely difficult to completely root out the evil, including sexual harassment. You can try to put new messages and values on the walls or in emails but employees will carry on with habits that are familiar and comfortable. However, since it is not possible to replace it, it is possible to work realigning some of the more useful mechanisms. The

Speaking technically, the interplay of power, rank, and privilege alter the brain’s responses to power, leading us to interpret the world very differently. Being in a position of power reduces our ability to understand others’ experience as well as have empathy for others, especially when they are different than us. “People in power receive much more positive mirroring than others so it’s difficult to discern where we’re “landing” with people. For example, a junior colleague may disagree vehemently with a boss, but all verbal and non-verbal communication makes the boss believe she/he is in agreement. People in power also have a harder time discerning the difference between intent and impact (Leader to Leader: Talking About Power and Harassment)”. It’s not only lonely at the top, but it’s very quiet; employees are far more likely to tell their bosses what they think they want to hear, rather than what is true for them. People in high-ranking roles are less socially inhibited. Harassment is operationally defined as behavior that makes the victim feel uncomfortable or threatened, regardless of the intent of the offender. And so, it is critical that I and other leaders put steps in place to assure that those in power don’t cause harm. As challenging as it might be, we can and