Correlation Between Sexual Harassment and Gender in the Workplace, Research Paper Example

Sexual harassment and gender bias in workplace has been has been a point of contention and debate for a long time. However, now due to increased resistance and improved HR policies, such discrimination and atrocities have come in limelight. The problem had been conceptualized and was in the backdrop of almost all workplaces; it was an open secret that the employees faced but job insecurity and other potential risks with regards to their job forced them to be silent spectators of the prelude. New legislation and a strong voice has led the employers of every organization to formulate, implement and execute strict set of rules, to avoid any such problems regarding sexual harassment in workplace. The Supreme Court verdict in Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc. expanded and stamped the concept of the hostile workplace and was a pertinent example to win sexual harassment suits.

My question is what conditions gives the male workforce the audacity to propose such sexual behavior? The reasons are quite simple to define. Let me define the relationship between a male manager and his female subordinate. The Manager has his hands full, be in terms of opportunities, extra incentives, short breaks, leave, performance ranking, hike, overtime, positive feedback, odd working hours; managers are better described to manage a portfolio of benefits and is the ultimate supreme power in his kingdom. Female counterparts often relent to sexual fervors for reaping the package of benefits that the manager has to offer or may be subtle and afraid to speak against such autocratic and indecent behavior. The behavioral patterns in the Asian countries are different though.  Here the female gentry are conscious about their society and reputation and often bear the grunt silently to avoid scam or criticism. Thus the main aspect focuses on the lack of equal employment opportunities among male and female counterparts. Moreover, job insecurity in the large number of contract workers also gives rise to such heinous activities. These temporary employees try to float on every leaf that helps them to keep their job. Their sense of insecurity is exploited to attain sexual favors by the male counterparts in the organization.

Problem Definition

The term correlation between sexual harassment and gender conveys a contemporary picture of male aggression towards his female counterparts. It also examines the male/female relationship matrix that leads to such profuse discriminated behavior. Thus this study is to assess the gender bias and how it induces sexual harassment? It signifies the aspect that how one gender slightly powerful in respect to hierarchy than the other could stimulate responses to affiliation of sexual fervor? Does a favorable and secured position in the workplace gives one gender the ownership to exploit the sexual instincts of the other gender?

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of this project was to develop a Human Resource plan for preservation of rights against sexual harassment. The project included determining the feasibility of the creating norms, regulations and strictures on behalf of the authority or the company in consideration. It would also interpret plans and policies that could save the company from the extra burden of harassment cases, extra benefit costs and improving its reputation in the global market.

Setting of the Problem

1. Name of the agency or organization: Infosys
2. Type of organization: IT
3. Products or services offered: IT
4. Service or market area (including geographic): India, America
5. Customers/clients: Samsung, GM, Bank of America
6. Organizational structure: Enterprise Architecture Governance
7. Staffing: Full time
8. Demographics of community: Banking, transportation
9. Coordination with others (internally/externally):
10. Source of funds/revenues: Resource vendor
11. Physical setting (plant/office): San Fransisco

History and Background of the Problem

The word sexual harassment was conceptualised in 1970 though it existed much before. However, during this time there was a strong upsurge and vocal protest about sexual harassment and its potential negative effects on individual and working environment. A group of women changed the dimension and gravity of protests in face of such behaviour. Professor Patai writes “that in 1974 when Lin Farley was teaching a class at Cornell University she found that many of her students had left jobs because of the behavior of men in the work place. In 1978 Farley published Sexual Shakedown: The Sexual Harassment of Women on the Job, the first step toward action on the issue. Catharine MacKinnon then published The Sexual Harassment of Working Women, in 1979; successfully making the argument this kind of harassment was a form of discrimination that violated the 1964 Civil Rights Act.”

In her book, Farley made her point clear that while working sexually aggressive men had transformed the working atmosphere intolerable and at that some point of action needed to be taken. The movement gained momentum when Carmita Wood, a 44-year old assistant, working in the office of a Cornell physicist fell ill and had to abandon the job. She revealed the fact that the continuous advances from her boss made her susceptible to depression and filed for unemployment compensation in Ithaca, New York. She reaped the first seeds of revolt and exposed the forum, where such immoral activities could not only penalise the offenders but also compensate the victims. Thus in 1970s, courts began to decipher and implement action as per preexisting laws that prohibited gender bias in employment to bar sexual harassment of workers.

Scope of the Project

The project enhances to necessitate the reasons that eventually lead to sexual harassments even after proliferation and legally banned by courts. It is an attempt to study in detail the reason of human behavior for such indulgence and what actions on behalf of the organization as well as employees needs to be taken to prevent the menace.

Our efforts would include analysis how new measures and policies would substantiate and lower the incidence of such cases. Be it a strict adherence of policies by the respective organizations or be a combined effort of the female workforce to dispute the fallacies of their working environment. According to the data from 2002-2003 National Organizations Study, this paper interprets how gender composition leads to the incidence of sexual harassment. Observation reveals a positive and discrete increase in the cases of sexual harassment with the increase in the proportion of woman in the workplace.   The point of contention continues until the workplace attains a state of gender balance (same proportion of man and woman workers). The incidence of sexual incitement decreases with an increase in the number of female co-workers.

The purpose is to understand the conditions and situations that lead to such behavior. Gender categorization and limiting their scope has increased the horror of workplace. We would try to understand and validate the circumstances that pertains the scope of correlation between sex and gender. Our analysis would critically examine to find out why as much as half of working women report to experience sexual harassment at some point (USMSPB, 1995; Fitzgerald et al., 1988; Loy and Stewart, 1984; Adams, Kottke, and Padgitt, 1983; Schneider, 1982). These activities affect the psychological makeup of the women workers and leads to depression, suicide and even gross losses in terms of financial assets of the company. Their work, office and family life gets affected and even the company has to bear the extra costs of medical insurance and other benefits. In other words our plan encompasses the red tapism and the fallacies in the HR policies that make women apprehensive of exposing their managers or fellow colleagues. We would formulate a section of easy yet concrete points that would facilitate the smooth operational indulgence of the crime. Thus no victim would be initiated to shut their opinion or punish their counterparts.

Importance (Significance) of the Project

The project focuses on the humanitarian aspect of solution. Hundreds of HR policies may be listed and annexed in all portfolios of workers but it is rather shocking that most of them are not initiated and progressive. They speak in terms of orthodox scriptures that are often difficult to follow. It is a human problem and it needs to be fixed by logic and mental vigor rather than stipulated strictures.

Definition of Terms

HRM- Human Resource Mangement.

USMSPP -United States Merit Systems Protection Board

The problem needs to be addressed as a social issue. However, I have provided a humanitarian touch to my project. I know it is not a social science project, but one that would formulate a plan to address the issue of correlation between gender and sexual harassment. My project would highlight ways and means that would make the appeal process of thousands of women, facing the challenges in workplace to speak about their rights.

Reference

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