If you’ve been on Social Media in the last couple of years, you’ll most likely have seen a flood of statuses or shared posts tagged #metoo.
The campaign was originally created in 2007 by civil rights activist Tarana Burke to reach sexual assault survivors in underprivileged communities.
It has received recent attention in light of allegations against big Hollywood players and high-profile businessmen.
After former first minister of Scotland Alex Salmond, took to the stand last week facing a string of sexual assault charges, some of which have been made by former Scottish government officials, Briony McDermott, employment solicitor at Wake Smith, looks at the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace and how to deal with this.
She said: “Taking it back to basics, it is important to understand what exactly constitutes sexual harassment. This is defined in the Equality Act 2010 as “unwanted conduct of a sexual nature, which has the purpose or effect of violating the subject’s dignity, or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the subject”.
“While sexual harassment can take many forms and it is not possible to exhaustively list examples of harassment, this can include suggestive marks, inappropriate touching, e-mails, circulation of pornographic material and jokes about an employee’s personal life.
“Often, these comments will be passed off as “banter”, but consideration should always be paid as to how they make the recipient or anyone overhearing them feel.”
A recent survey by the Trade Union Congress (TUC) found that of 1,500 women surveyed more than half (52%) say they have been a victim of sexual harassment in the workplace. In 20% of those cases, the perpetrator was the superior of the person surveyed. Worryingly, 79% of women surveyed said that they didn’t report the harassment to their employer.
The Women and Equalities Select Committee report into sexual harassment in the workplace identified the profound impact sexual harassment has on women: “Sexual harassment can have a devastating impact on those who are subjected to it. Mental and physical health often suffer, leading to anxiety, poor sleep, depression, loss of appetite, headaches, exhaustion or nausea. Victims feel humiliation, mistrust, anger, fear and sadness”
Briony added: “The #metoo campaign is seeing not only women speak out, but men too.
“Historically the majority of sexual harassment complaints have been made by women against men, but sexual harassment can happen to anyone.
“There are cases of women sexually harassing men, women sexually harassing other women and men sexually harassing other men. In fact sexual harassment is an even bigger problem in minority groups, with 70% of LGBT workers surveyed reported that they had been subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace.
“Employers should take all allegations of sexual harassment seriously, regardless of the sex of the complainant or the alleged harasser and ensure that a thorough investigation is carried out, as ultimately, they could be found liable for the actions of their staff if they fail to take allegations seriously and legal action is brought.
“Most businesses will have policies in place stating what they believe to be acceptable conduct both in the workplace and on out of work events such as parties or team-building events.
“Any policy should also state how complaints should be made and the consequences for employees who breach these standards. New staff members should be made familiar with all policies during their induction, but as with everything, employers should carry out refresher sessions, ideally on an annual basis.
“One of the most important things for employees is that they feel equipped to make a complaint if they need to, whether that be directly to their line manager or HR conduct, and that all employees are aware that no form of sexual harassment will be tolerated.
“Employees have suffered in silence for too long, and hopefully the #metoo campaign will empower those who have been subject to harassment to speak out.”
For further advice on employment law, policies and procedures contact Briony McDermott at Wake Smith Solicitors on 0114 266 6660 or email [email protected]
