What do you mean by sexual harassment at your workplace?
While the workplace is termed as a place where employees visit every day to work and earn a living, sexual harassment can be defined as an act where a part or whole of the sexual act is inflicted on a person without their consent. It can be the boss, the manager, a colleague, a client or anyone related to their office. Any unwanted sexual advances should be reported to the sexual harassment law firm on day 1 to avoid further trouble. It may not always be that the molester physically violates you. Still, any pervert joke which is pointed at you and you feel unnerved also falls under sexual harassment, only in the verbal category.
What are the types of sexual harassment in the workplace
Broadly, sexual harassment can be divided into two categories. Asking or threatening an employee or co-worker to do sexual favours in return of promotion, salary hike or any other advantages is known as quid pro quo sexual harassment. On the other hand, pervert behaviour, telling filthy jokes, body shaming with harsh comments and unacceptable moves in public place is called a hostile environment.
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Making shady comments, perverted gestures, unwanted advances which makes the opposite person feel extremely uncomfortable or cripples the person from within falls under the code of sexual harassment.
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Forcefully making someone watch pornography, nude photographs or making them hear erotic stories is a type of harassment.
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Physical contacts and sexual advances without consent is nothing but a crime.
Impacts of sexual harassment at the workplace-
Sexual harassment of any type has a deep-rooted impact on the victim. Apart from the immense physical trouble that the victim goes through, the mental trauma, the stress and the psychological setback are tough to deal with and recover from. For legal aids, you can consult the best sexual harassment lawyers and raise demand for justice. Here are the various impacts a person suffers after being sexually harassed-
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Emotionally drained-
Being sexually harassed needs no gender. Thus, the pain, suffering, trauma and stress the survivor goes through is not gender-specific. When a person is asked to do some sexual favour or is experiencing pervert and lewd comments regularly, at first, he may not be able to gather up the courage to speak up and protest or lodge a complain. It often affects the mental health of the victim, and he feels down or as a looser in his own eyes. Anxiety, becoming perplexed over the minimal issue, becomes an everyday thing. Different Sexual harassment lawyers in CT has reported that they have dealt with victims who have suffered from chronic clinical depression due to the harassment.
Also, this affects their personal life and relationships, as well. Low self-esteem, lack of confidence, suicidal thoughts become a part of their lives. They can not trust anyone easily even from their closed circles and starts doubting everyone’s intention, which in turn is exceptionally strenuous psychologically.
2. Physical problems-
Well, physic and emotions are closely interlinked with each other. A victim who is exposed to sexual harassment every day at the workplace shall possibly have different health problems. Unwanted sexual contacts will lead to bruising or several injuries which may be deep and require much time to heal. Apart from that, loss of appetite, headache and backaches from stress, sleep disorder because of nightmares becomes a problem. To walk past the fear, one may get addicted to drugs, alcohol or caffeine, which causes severe hormonal imbalance and other multi-organ diseases. Weak immunity system and risks of blood pressure and diabetes posses a grave threat in the long run.
3. Finance-
Sexual harassment at the workplace can prove to be fatal in term of career prospect. If the harassment is done in return of assurance of promotion or pay-hike, protesting, lodging a complaint or saying a no to it often leads to termination from the job. The complaint cell may refuse to take actions against the offender if he is from a high post in the company or is someone with a good reputation and power. In that case, the victim may lose his/her job and also it may happen that they may not be able to find another job according to their prospect because of manipulated references given as revenge. Also, filing a case, appointing and consulting a sexual harassment law firm incurs a lot of expense.
Apart from the low productivity rate, the company may also suffer from a decreasing economical curve rate due to loss of capable employees due to sexual harassment every year. But, if you are a victim of sexual harassment at workplace, immediately complain and fight for what is right without any fear unless you are provided with the justice you want and you deserve.
