Sexual Harassment Paper
HRM320: Employment Law
Professor Brian Lahargoue
DeVry University Online
Whitley Thomas

Introduction Sexual harassment is an act that many individuals are involved in daily. Regardless of the reason why a person are harassed; sexual harassment is illegal, unwanted and makes the individual being harassed feel uncomfortable. Many people believe that women are the only individuals who can be harassed. This is a false belief, as men can be sexually harassed as well. Many individuals do not report sexual harassment for fear of a hostile work environment and to prevent embarrassment. Throughout this paper, we will discuss sexual harassment, the different types of sexual harassment and examples. Whether someone harasses someone on purpose or not it is still unacceptable and is punishable by law.
Define sexual harassment as the term is used legally.
According to Law.com, sexual harassment is defined as "unwanted sexual approaches (including touching, feeling, groping) and/or repeated unpleasant, degrading and/or sexist remarks directed toward an employee with the implied suggestion that the target's employment status, promotion or favorable treatment depend upon a positive response and/or "cooperation" (Sexual harassment, 2013). An example of sexual harassment would be an executive assistant's boss telling her he would give her a promotion or incentive if she went on a date with him.
Explain how sexual harassment differs from gender discrimination.
Gender discrimination (also known as sex discrimination) is defined as treating an individual poorly because of their sex or because they are associated with a group of a certain sex (Sex-Based Discrimination, n.d.). For example, an employer treats a female employee poorly because she is associated with a women's rights group. Gender discrimination is also a violation of title VII and the individual can file a claim with the EEOC. Sexual harassment occurs when an individual asks for favors in the form of unwanted sexual advances, sexual favors, etc. Perhaps the individual wanted to get a raise and their immediate supervisor asks the individual to perform a sexual favor and they will get their raise. Nor Gender discrimination or sexual harassment is not gender specific. The individual can be either a male or female.
Provide the legal definition of "quid pro quo" (also known as "vicarious liability") sexual harassment. Provide one example of a behavior which could be found to be quid pro quo sexual harassment. Quid pro quo or vicarious liability is defined as occurring “when a job benefit is directly tied to an employee submitting to unwelcome sexual advances” (The Law and your job, 2013). The Advocates for Human Rights also state that “Quid pro quo harassment is the most commonly recognized form of sexual harassment. It occurs when (1) job benefits, including employment, promotion, salary increases, shift or work assignments, performance expectations and other conditions of employment, are made contingent on the provision of sexual favors, usually to an employer, supervisor or agent of the employer who has the authority to make decisions about employment actions, or (2) the rejection of a sexual advance or request for sexual favors results in a tangible employment detriment, a loss of a job benefit of the kind described above” (Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment, 2010). An example of Quid Pro Quo harassment would be a supervisor asking a female employee to have sex with him and she will be first in line for a promotion or pay raise.
Provide the legal definition of hostile environment sexual harassment. Provide one example of a behavior which could be found to be hostile environment sexual harassment. Hostile environment sexual harassment “occurs when an employee is subjected to comments of a sexual nature, offensive sexual materials, or unwelcome physical contact as a regular part of the work environment” (The Law and your Job, 2013). An example of this type of harassment would be a co-worker forcing an employee to quit because they make them uncomfortable with their sexual advances.
List the factors which contribute to a determination of whether behavior is sexual harassment. According to the EEOC, factors that contribute to sexual harassment are “(1) whether the conduct was verbal or physical or both; (2) how frequently it was repeated; (3) whether the conduct was hostile or patently offensive; (4) whether the alleged harasser was a co-worker or supervisor; (5) whether others joined in perpetrating the harassment; and (6) whether the harassment was directed at more than one individual” (Identifying Sexual Harassment, 1992).
Explain what situations are considered "severe or pervasive" and why these terms are important. According to the textbook, severe or pervasive situations occur when an employee is so uncomfortable with the harassment that they resign. Situations that include words like “sweetie or baby” are not considered severe or pervasive though they may make the employee uncomfortable. Things that occur one time or sporadically are not considered severe or pervasive either; such as jokes, teasing, name calling, etc. (Sexual Harassment, n.d.). These terms are important because it allows the company or the EEOC to know if it is a case that is worth being pursued.

Give the main legal reason why every company should have a valid written policy against sexual harassment (besides the fact it is the "right" thing to do.) The main reason every company should adopt a sexual harassment policy is to prevent it. When employees know what to expect and their rights, they are able to recognize the signs and report it. The “harasser” is also aware of the consequences that will occur when they harass someone. By having a written policy, everyone is on the same page and victims also know what they can expect from the company.

Case Analysis:
I have chosen the case FARAGHER v. CITY OF BOCA RATON to analyze.
The facts:
Beth Faragher resigned from her job as a lifeguard after her claim that her immediate supervisors Bill Terry and David Silverman made the work environment very hostile work environment due to sexual harassment. She claims that the supervisors made the workplace very hostile for both her and her co-workers. Faragher and her co-workers experienced un-welcomed touching and spoke of the women in a lewd way (Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, 1998). Faragher filed a complaint against the City of Boca Raton saying the City had knowledge of the harassment committed but its supervisory employees (Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, 1998).
The decision: The court ruled that both Terry and Silverman were guilty of being very pervasive in committing sexual harassment. There was another supervisor aware of the sexual harassment the women experienced, but they did not report it to the city. The court ruled that the city was not negligent in preventing the harassment as they were not aware of it. Though Terry and Silverman were acting as "city officials" the city is not responsible of their actions, especially when they were not informed of the situation (Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, 1998). They also ruled that the supervisors violated Title VII and was very pervasive in its entirety.
I {agree or disagree} with the court’s decision because….. I agree with the decision because the fault is that of the supervisors. The supervisors created a hostile environment for Faragher and her female co-workers. The third supervisor should have reported them to the City and/or the women should have when they noticed nothing was being resolved. The city was not negligent is stopping the harassment because they were not aware. Beth should have just filed a claim against the two supervisors, unless she had absolute proof that the city was involved in any way.

Appendix
A good sexual harassment policy will include the following sections… * Definition- The sexual harassment policy should provide employees with the definition, types of sexual harassment and the signs to look out for. * Discipline- The policy should state that sexual harassment will not be tolerated and that violators will be dealt with accordingly. There should also be a step by step process for violators including warnings, investigation and possible termination. * Make sure that the victims know how to file a complaint and that they feel comfortable in doing so. Victims need to feel comfortable and not like they will be retaliated against is they report the harassment. They also need to know that if the situation is not handled accordingly, they are able to file a complaint with the EEOC, to bring charges against the offender.

References
Defining Sexual Harassment. (2010). Retrieved December 5, 2013, from The Advocates for Human Rights website: http://www.stopvaw.org/ defining_sexual_harassment
FARAGHER v. CITY OF BOCA RATON. (1997, October). Retrieved December 3, 2013, from http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/pdf/97-282P.ZS
The law and your job. (2013). Retrieved December 5, 2013, from American Bar Association website: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_education/ resources/law_issues_for_consumers/sexualharassment_quidproquo.html
The Law and Your Job: What is hostile environment harassment. (n.d.). Retrieved December 7, 2013, from American Bar Association website: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_education/resources/ law_issues_for_consumers/sexualharassment_hostileenvironment.html
Preventing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace. (2013). Retrieved December 5, 2013, from http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/ preventing-sexual-harassment-workplace-29851.html
Questions and Answers about Sexual Harassment: Identifying Sexual Harassment. (1992, December). Retrieved December 6, 2013, from U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission website: http://www.mit.edu/activities/safe/data/ other/EEOC-pub-qa
Quid Prod Quo Sexual Harassment. (2010). Retrieved December 5, 2013, from The Advocates for Human Rights website: http://www.stopvaw.org/ quid_pro_quo_sexual_harassment
Sex-based discrimination. (n.d.). Retrieved December 4, 2013, from U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission website: http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/ sex.cfm
Sexual Harassment. (n.d.). Retrieved December 7, 2013, from http://kmblegal.com/ legal_topics/sexual-harassment/
Sexual harassment. (2013). Retrieved December 4, 2013, from http://dictionary.law.com/Default.aspx?selected=1944