•Nor Haslizah Binti Samsuddin DEFINITION • SEXUAL HARASSMENT is defined as “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for favors and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that takes place under any of the following conditions:
• 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 or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment. Forms of Sexual Harassment • Verbal - Words, comment, joke, prank, sound and questions in the form of threats or sexual suggestions. Intimidation or Threats
•“Quid pro quo”
•“something for something” •“you scratch my back I scratch yours” • Non-verbal / signal - Opinion or cast a signal/ non-verbal impla an intention or desire, lick the lips or eat foodwith how to seduce, hand signals or sign language suggests that sexual behavior and other. • Visual disturbances - Showing pornographic materials, drawing obscene pictures, writing letters based on sexual and other. • Psychological - Repeat the invitation that was not socially acceptable, persuade persuasion continued and other. Like want to kiss. • Physical - Unwanted touch, tap, pinching, stroking, brushing up against the body and other. STATISTIC • A study on victims and harassers in Johor Bahru in 2004.
• There are 12 bahavioral about sexual harassment:
– Sexual harassment is common that over 50% of the victims
themselves. • Behavior is touch 60% • Receive phone calls based sex 58% • Which based observed adult 62% • Given the signal based adult 60% • Listening to adult conservations 54% • Reproved with words based on the adult body 56% • Exposed with material based sex 74% • Joke prank using obscene language 74% • Became the target of sexual metaphor 66% • Standing and sitting with close to feel uncomfortable 68% • Touch body parts like hands and not difficult etc 52% • Reproved the word sex is diffuse sech as sweet love, two heart are not sincere 52% • There are also some behaviors that are not frequent, is less than 10% done by perpetrators over victims. • Behavior that includes kiss 2% • Forced to accept sex invitation or social 10 % • Rewards promised to cooperate if the sexual act based 2 % • Back later requested more time though or work there is no work to be done 8 % • Presented the gift based such as intimate lingerie 4 % • Forced to do physical relationship sex 4 % • Forced to accept social invitations 10 % Sexual harassment in the workplace is generally into two conditions, namely Quid Pro Quo and the environment is causing the threat • Quid Pro Quo is a condition where a person of high rank and has the power to control employee (victim) to act or sexual harassment of subordinate employees. •The employee shall comply with the requirements of subordinate perpetrators because victims will feel depressed if not compliant to the requirements of stakeholders so that victims themselves will find a way out such as leave request, the victim will stop working or stopped working by the perpetrators. Environment that is causing the threat • While the second is the environment that pose a threat is meant sexual harassment committed against victims who should not touch such as, use of obscene language or obscene signals and the like. PENAL CODE • Section 354: Outraging modesty – assault or use of criminal force to a person with intent to outrage modesty
• Section 375: Rape – intercouse with a woman
– against her will, – without consent , – with consent but consent obtained under threat, or under a misconception, or when the women was unable, to understand the consequences – women under 16 years of age • Section 509: Words or gesture intended to insult the modesty of a woman
– words, sounds or gestures
– exhibits objects
• Section 498: Enticing or taking away or
detaining with criminal intenta married woman –( illicit sex) EFFECTS PERSONAL IMPACT •For the victims, it often produces feelings of revulsion, disgust, anger, and helplessness. It damages the victim's health. It results in emotional and physical stress and stress-related illnesses. •Victims may experience severe emotional trauma, anxiety, nervousness, depression and feelings of low self-esteem (Code of Practice on the Prevention and Eradication of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace, The Ministry of Human Resources, Malaysia). •Some of the health effects, that can occur in someone who has been sexual harassed as depression, sleeplessness or nightmare, difficulty concentrating, fatigue or loss of motivation and traumatic stress as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD). Some of the effects of sexual harassment victim can experience: • Decreased work performance as the victim must focus on dealing with the harassment and the surrounding dynamics and/or effects; psychological effects or harassment can also decrease work performances. • Loss of trust in the types of people that occupy similar positions as the harasser. • Some of the health effects, that can occur in someone who has been sexual harassed as depression, sleeplessness or nightmare, difficulty concentrating, fatigue or loss of motivation and traumatic stress as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD). ORGANIZATIONAL IMPACT • Effects of sexual harassment on organizations • Decreased productivity and increased team conflict • Decrease in success at meeting financial goals (because of team conflict) • Decreased job satisfaction • Loss of staff and expertise from resignations to avoid harassment or resignations/firings of alleged harassers; loss of students who leave school to avoid harassment • Decreased productivity and/or increased absenteeism by staff or students experiencing harassment • Increased health care costs and sick pay costs because of the health consequences of harassment • The knowledge that harassment is permitted can undermine ethical standards and discipline in the organization in general, as staff and/or students lose respect for, and trust in, their seniors who indulge in, or turn a blind eye to, sexual harassment • If the problem is ignored, a company's or school's image can suffer MEASURE TO OVERCOME • In discussing issues related to sexual harassment, there are many ways that can be taken to overcome and deal with this problem. Although arise shyness and humility for the victims, necessary for them to know there are several policies and laws that help them. • As a victim: – The way that can be taken by the victim is tell the harasser that is behavior is unwelcome and that you want to stop it. – If the harasser continues, talk to someone in your organization who could help you. – must record the details of each event as date, time, location, what happened, what was said, how you felt, and the names of any witnesses or others victimized by this person. Complaint procedures: • •Victim of sexual harassment should submit in writing of such complaint to the Managing Director within 48 hours from the date of occurrence and allow 4 weeks to investigate and take appropriate action. (If the complaint is against the Managing Directors, such matter shall be referred to the Management Committee). • •Following the receipt of the complaint, the Managing Director shall assign a Management Committee who is not a party in the complaint to carry out a full investigation and to inform the victim of the results of the investigation. • •The Company shall maintain confidentiality of the report and the details of the investigations to the fullest extent possible. • •If the outcome of the investigation is not satisfactory, the victim may then refer his/her complaint to the Ministry of Human Resources or take up a personal law suit against the harasser. • Source: Department of Labor, Ministry of Human Resources, Malaysia. Organization Policy • It is the duty of all managers to ensure that the company’s policy on sexual harassment and any amendment or revision made from time to time shall be brought to the notice of employees. All policy statement will be regularly reviewed, revised as necessary and any revisions brought to the notice of employees.
• “ It is the policy of Telekom Malaysia to provide a working
environment that is free from sexual advances, requests for sexual ……. and other verbal or physical conduct. Telekom Malaysia stands firm against all form of sexual harassment in the work place . An injury to one is lying to all. Dignity and respect for all workers is a high priority Telekom Malaysia”. (Ministry of Human Resources, Malaysia). • It is the company’s policy to provide adequate measures to create and maintain a workplace that is free from sexual harassment. The company requires all employees to cooperate with the management in maintaining a safe working condition, and to prevent and avoid any situation or action that could be construed as harassment, humiliation and intimidation of a sexual nature to themselves and to others. Goverment • The Industrial Court declared that sexual harassment at the workplace is an offence and set out there is an implied essential term of all contracts of employment and that an employer has the obligation to respect an employee’s dignity. • Such a decision of the court is significant in the industrial jurisprudence of Malaysia, since it is a great departure from the earlier stance on the issues of sexual harassment at the workplace, where the victim’s veracity is assumed to be linked to her ability to react and go through the procedures like making a police report( Zeenath Kausar: 2005).