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Definitions
What is sexual harassment?
Sexual harassment is a form of discrimination and is illegal under federal and state law. It includes offensive behavior regarding sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or transgender status.
Sexual harassment shows itself in a variety of forms and in varying degrees of seriousness. Sexual harassment can be perpetrated by employees, bosses, clients, customers, vendors, or anyone you interact with through work. It can also take place in the office, out in the field, at work parties, via digital or phone communication, etc.
Sexual harassment includes unwelcome conduct which is either of a sexual nature, or which is directed at an individual because of that individual’s sex when:
- 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, even if the complaining individual is not the intended target of the sexual harassment;
- Such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of employment; or
- Submission to or rejection of such conduct is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting an individual’s employment.
There are two categories of sexual harassment:
- Hostile Work Environments are created when repeated unwanted verbal or physical advances, sexually explicit derogatory statements, or sexually discriminatory remarks cause discomfort or humiliation in recipients, interfering with their job performance.
- Quid Pro Quo harassment occurs when a person in authority attempts to trade job benefits for sexual favors, including hiring, promotion, continued employment, or any other conditions or privileges of employment. It also includes threats including demotions, pay reductions, or termination.
Sometimes sexual harassment is intentional, other times the perpetrator is either unaware of crossing boundaries or believes to have had some kind of social permission from the other person(s) that their actions are acceptable. For this reason, we believe that the best rule is to never do or say anything that could come into question.
Examples of sexual harassment:
- To make crude remarks, jokes or gestures that degrade or antagonize someone, regardless of whether the actor’s intention is to offend.
- To pursue or flirt with someone persistently without the person’s willing participation.
- To flirt during inappropriate times and places, such as during work meetings, on sales calls, working with customers, etc, even when these advances would have been welcome in a different setting. Actions such as these can damage a person’s professional reputation, relationships, or standing within a company, as well as expose them to being sexually harassed by others.
- To comment or discuss someone’s appearance, sexuality, gender, personal convictions in a derogatory, antagonistic, or objectifying manner or a manner that makes them uncomfortable, regardless of whether the actor’s intention is to offend.
- To send, show, or expose a person(s) to sexually explicit or nuanced objects or messages.
- To invade someone’s personal space or inappropriately touch in any way.
- To imply, request or insist sexual favors of any kind.
- To stalk, bully, coerce or threaten another person to get them to engage in sexual acts.
Who can be a target of sexual harassment?
Anyone can be a victim of sexual harassment, regardless of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or transgender status. An individual can be a victim of sexual harassment even if they were not the intended recipient. Sexual harassment can occur between people of different sexes, sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, or transgender statuses.
What is sexual abuse and/or assault?
Sexual abuse and assault are similar and serious crimes. “Child sexual abuse” differs from “sexual assault” of an adult, however, in that it includes any sexual conduct with/toward/against a minor, regardless of the child’s consent. Both sexual abuse and assault can take a number of forms, and can change during the course of a single interaction.
Sexual assault is sexual contact or behavior that occurs or continues without explicit consent of the victim. Some forms of sexual assault include:
- Fondling or unwanted sexual touching.
- Forcing a victim to perform sexual acts, such as oral sex.
- Refusal to stop or discontinue sexual acts or touching when asked, even if consent had previously been given.
- Rape (forced intercourse).
- Attempted rape.
Child sexual abuse includes all of the above definitions + any conduct of an adult with/toward/against a minor, regardless of the child’s consent:
- Obscene phone calls, text messages, or digital interaction.
- Exhibitionism or exposing oneself to a minor.
- Masturbation in the presence of a minor or forcing the minor to masturbate.
- Producing, owning, or sharing pornographic images or movies of children.
- Sex trafficking.
- Any other sexual conduct that is harmful to a child's mental, emotional, or physical welfare.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- Sexual assault is a felony crime and must be reported to law enforcement.
- In most states in the US, any adult with knowledge of child sexual abuse is legally mandated to report to law enforcement.
What is gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation?
State law in many U.S. states defines “sex,” “gender identity,” “gender expression,” and “transgender”:
- Sex or Gender includes a person’s sex assigned at birth, gender identity and gender expression.
- Gender identity is a person’s internal understanding of their gender which includes male, female, a combination of male and female, neither male nor female, or a gender different from a person’s sex assigned at birth, or transgender.
- Gender expression is a person’s gender-related appearance or behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s sex assigned at birth.
- Sexual orientation is a person’s interpersonal physical, emotional, and/or romantic preferences in regards to attraction.
- Transgender is a general term that refers to a person whose gender identity differs from the person’s sex assigned at birth.
What is retaliation?
Unlawful retaliation is any action that would restrict an individual from coming forward to report or support a sexual harassment claim. Retaliatory actions do not need to be job-related or occur within the workplace to be considered unlawful retaliation.
Federal law protects anyone who has engaged in “protected activity,” which includes:
- Filing a complaint of sexual harassment either within the organization or with any federal or state-level anti-discrimination agency,
- Testifying or assisting in an anti-discrimination agency’s investigation, proceeding, or litigation involving sexual harassment,
- Opposing sexual harassment through verbal or informal complaints to management, or by simply informing a superior or manager,
- Complaining that another employee has been sexually harassed, or
- Encouraging another employee to report harassment.
Reporting Guide
WeVow believes that all incidents of sexual harassment should be taken very seriously, no matter the form that they take. If you are a victim or witness of an incident(s) or situation of sexual harassment (harassment) - even if the event or series of events seemed very subtle - WeVow’s reporting platform is available 24/7 for you to file a report with your employer.
We’ve worked to ensure reporting is safe, easy, and confidential. Simply click on the Report an Incident tab in your Employee Account Dashboard and the Incident Reporting platform will take you through the process one step at a time to gather essential information, such as the date of the incident, the name of the offender, the location where it occurred, all available and relevant evidence, and a written explanation to include all the information you need to include. These prompts will allow you to include all information and avoid email chains and follow-up conversations.
If you do not know how to define what you are a victim or witness of, or are unsure if it classifies as “sexual harassment”, that’s okay. Simply report what you do know. What is most important is that your employer is informed of the potential problem so that they can resolve the issue and ensure a safe, comfortable workplace for you and others.
When filing a report, you will have options to:
Report as a victim or witness
Reporting an incident:(Incident type-sexual Misconduct & Inappropriate behavior)
Reporting as (victim or witness)
Report whether it is a first-time offense, repeat offense, or series of incidents
Include the date(s) the incident(s) occurred
Include the location(s) where the incident(s) occurred
Select a different Admin to receive your report if the Admin who would normally receive it is involved or perceived to be involved in the situation
Include name of witness(if any witnesses?)
Name(s) of people this incident was reported to (optional).
Include name(s) of the offender(s) & describe incident details
Note your “Report Id” for future reference or you will also get report id in mail
Track the status of your report after filing (click My Reports & Enter your Report ID/code)
Filing a Charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
Each company has their own policies in dealing with reports of sexual harassment. If you feel as though your incident was not resolved by your employer, you can file a Charge of Discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or with your local or state agency. A charge of discrimination is a signed statement asserting that an employer, union or labor organization engaged in employment discrimination. It requests EEOC to take remedial action.
For instructions on how to file a charge with the EEOC navigate to the following page: https://www.eeoc.gov/employees/howtofile.cfm
Filing a Charge with a State or Local Agency:
Many states and local jurisdictions have their own anti-discrimination laws, and agencies responsible for enforcing those laws (Fair Employment Practices Agencies, or FEPAs). If you file a charge with a FEPA, it will automatically be "dual-filed" with EEOC if federal laws apply. You do not need to file with both agencies. Navigate to your state below for more information on how to file:
Alabama
In Alabama, you can file a discrimination claim with the federal administrative agency, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). You need to file your claim with the EEOC within 180 days of the incident to preserve your claim.
To file with the EEOC, find the office that holds jurisdiction in your area by zip code: https://www.eeoc.gov/field/