A few years ago, human resources director Tricia Svehla left work early for a doctor`s appointment. The next day, just before a meeting with her firm`s management team, which consisted of herself and eight men, one of her colleagues remarked on her absence.
”He asked if everything was OK, and I said yes. Then in a solicitous tone he said, `Was it that time of the month?` I practically crawled under the table,” recounted Svehla.
Apparently only the jokester found his comment funny. By day`s end, one by one, the other seven men apologized to Svehla for their co-worker`s remark.
Although she was not propositioned, Svehla believed that the remark was about ”power” and created a ”hostile” work environment. Both of these effects are among several factors used by the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission in defining sexual harassment.
The definition includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that affect an employee`s advancement or work performance.
Svehla, who now runs her own management-diversity consulting firm says she has encountered an increasing number of complaints about such subtle harassment. Recently a client told Svehla that she felt invisible, ignored in meetings, and a male co-worker pirated her ideas, only to receive full credit for them. Svehla includes these incidences in the category of subtle sexual harassment.
Some experts disagree. They fear that gray-area cases are sometimes misidentified as harassment, when they are really examples of sexism.
”The lighter gray the behavior, the more times it needs to be repeated to be considered sexual harassment,” says Susan L. Webb, editor of the Webb Report, a monthly newsletter on the topic, and author of ”Step Forward:
Sexual Harassment in the Workplace” (Mastermedia, $9.95).
Taken as isolated incidents, Svelha`s examples appear to be instances of sexism, not harassment, Webb says.
”It doesn`t make a difference which label you put on it, it`s still unacceptable behavior. We need to (end) it and stop worrying about which box it goes into,” Webb concludes.
It may be more accurate to view sexual harassment as a form of discrimination, argues lawyer Barbara Kate Repa, who recently co-wrote
”Sexual Harassment on the Job” (Nolo Press, $14.95).
”They are both covered by the same law, which is Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act (the section) that prohibits discrimination,” says Repa.
For now, however, there are established routes you can take to protect yourself. Should problems persist, and you decide you need to take legal action, data you collect now could prove instrumental in court.
For a sexual harassment case, you must make it clear at the outset that the behavior is unwanted, says Repa. But communicating that may not be as straightforward as you think.
Among Repa`s advice about some of the gray areas:
– Clothing: ”The law is going to look at how you were dressed,” says Repa. ”I`m not suggesting you wear a suit of armor, but it is important not to give off mixed messages in a conscious or unconscious way in our dress.”
– Office decor: If you see a pornographic or sexist image in a common area, remove it. If it is hanging in a colleague`s work area, first ask him to take it down, either orally or in writing.
Be specific in your demands and ask for immediate action. Keep a detailed journal of your requests and his responses to them. Be dispassionate in recounting events. Cite dates, time and the names of people present.
– Jokes: Do not respond to unwanted comments about menstruation and sexist jokes. Do not try to stop the behavior with more joking. Leave the room if necessary.
Confront the offender when he is alone. If you do so in a crowd it will make him feel defensive or self-righteous.
Svehla waited a month before confronting her co-worker. She collected more ammunition with a series of comments he made to her and other women at work about their appearance. She says that if the incident had happened today, she might have told him right after the meeting that she found his behavior offensive.
In any case, he stopped.
LIFELINES
Defining harassment
National Council for Research on Women offers a booklet addressing legal definitions of sexual harassment and procedures to combat it. Send $7 to the council at 47-49 E. 65th St., New York, N.Y. 10021, or call 212-570-5001.
Free pamphlet
American Psychological Association offers a free pamphlet on coping with sexual harassment. Send a stamped, self-addressed, business-size envelope to Public Affairs, 750 1st St. N.E., Washington, D.C. 20002, or call
202-336-5700.
Feminist Majority
Fund for the Feminist Majority offers advice about Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claims, where to get legal, professional help. Call 703-522-2501, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Union women
Coalition of Labor Union Women advises members about how and where to file sexual-harassment grievances within their unions. CLUW, 15 Union Square, New York, N.Y. 10003; 212-242-0700.
Worker`s bookshelf
”The Tech Writing Game,” by Janet Van Wicklen (Facts on File, $22.95); ”A Strategy for Winning,” by Carl Mays (Lincoln-Bradley Publishing, $21.95).
