Workplace sexual harassment; a growing concern

11 January 2021

In today’s world, women play a vital role equal to men in the private and public sectors—ranging from physical labour to space exploration. In Sri Lanka, private-sector female workers; employed mostly in shops, malls, garments and small industries, don’t work continuously in one place due to various reasons. As a result, organised-sector Trade Unions (TUs) are unable to mobilize them. 

Although the ‘Shop and Office Act’ of Sri Lanka guarantees the rights of private-sector workers, employees are unable to enjoy these rights due to a lack of knowledge on labour rights and employers denying them these rights. For example, workers often do not mobilise due to ignorance on the right to association. 
These labour rights violations cause many female workers to fall victim to workplace sexual harassment. Women who face sexual harassment in the private and public sectors, hesitate to complain against the perpetrators. Further, they are forced to tolerate such harassment due to the non-existence of a proper complaints mechanism. 
Workplace sexual harassment is a global phenomenon. Considering this, the International Labour Organization (ILO) in 2019 set out to define what workplace sexual harassment is and proclaimed Convention 190 on Sexual Harassment. Importantly, the Convention outlines what sexual harassment is, and the methods of such harassment.

The Convention is important as it seeks to eliminate workplace sexual harassment. Unfortunately it has been ratified by just two countries, and Sri Lanka has not ratified it. If the government ratified the Convention, it would allow the enactment of laws to prevent workplace sexual harassment to combat the widespread problem.
Significantly, Convention 190 defines that sexual harassment can happen to women by men, men by women and even among same sex groups. It can also happen as peer harassment. Additionally, harassment can be committed by a supervisor or a subordinate, and there is also third-party harassment by non-employees like clients, students, parents, vendors, external service staff and suppliers. 
There are many types of sexual harassments. The most obvious is physical harassment. The Convention defines this as making unnecessary physical contact, standing unnecessarily closer to the person, touching, patting, stroking, squeezing, hugging or pinching, brushing or rubbing one’s genitalia against someone, and 
sexual assault. 

"Unfortunately, ILO’s Convention 190 is not ratified by many nations, including Sri Lanka"

Apart from physical, Convention 190 also defines verbal sexual harassment. This includes making sexual comments or insinuation, insulting a person’s sex or sexual identity, commenting on a person’s physical appearance, age, private life, single or martial condition, maternal or non- maternal status. Then there are acts of relating vulgar jokes or stories, or inquiring about sexual fantasies, directing work discussions to sexual topics, requesting sexual favours or bribes, requesting sexual favours in return for employment prospects (quid pro quo), whistling or making sexually suggestive sounds, using obscene and offensive language, making anonymous phone calls, making repeated unwelcome social invitations, gossiping, slandering or spreading rumours. Perpetrators can also engage in sexual gestures like staring, leering, ogling, winking or watching, blowing kisses, wagging the tongue or licking lips, making sexually expressive hand or finger movements, and imitating sexually suggestive acts. 

There is also the element of visual sexual harassment. This includes sending unwanted emails, text messages or posting sexually explicit jokes, sending anonymous letters, emails, twitters, paging or texting, making inappropriate advances via social networks, writing graffiti of sexual nature, displaying sexually explicit pictures, photographs, posters, calendars, desktop wallpapers or pornographic sites, posting another person’s intimate pictures/ videos taken without their knowledge or consent online.
Convention 190 stresses that sexual harassment is not trivial, amusing or harmless. Depending on the situation, the person and the incident, it can have far-reaching consequences. It also negatively impacts an employee’s safety, comfort, physical health, psychological wellbeing, productivity, terms of work and working environment, and the right to his or her body. 

An employee who faces any of these forms of sexual harassment may feel a range of emotions like shock, disgust, confusion, anger, shame, humiliation, fear, helplessness, indignation, self-pity, guilty, vulnerability, resentment and distress. This can lead to psychological trauma and affect the employee’s psychological state of mind, and in turn, impact on their work, leading to impaired judgement, de-motivation, absenteeism, and reduced productivity. 
Employees who face such harassment would miss out on career opportunities. They could undergo emotions ranging from irritation and nervousness to anger, powerlessness and humiliation, loss of self-esteem, deteriorating relationships, social isolation, depression, stress, and hypertension and other stress-related illnesses, drug and alcohol abuse, resignation and even suicide. 

"Women’s Organisations and Civil Society should lobby policy makers to take adequate action"

It is important that employers take note of sexual harassment as it impacts them as well. If sexual harassment goes unchecked, employers may encounter among their staff low productivity, impaired judgment, lack of trust, lack of teamwork, de-motivation among employees, high absenteeism, high turnover of staff, risk of workplace accidents and loss of valuable workers. There are financial costs too in the form of sick pay, medical costs and legal bills for court actions, in addition to a negative corporate image due to sexual discrimination within the institution.

In a social context, sexual harassment affects the cost of welfare benefits, rehabilitation costs, legal and criminal justice related expenses, healthcare expenditure and denial of (particularly women’s) employment. 
Considering the above mentioned scenarios, it is imperative that lawmakers introduce new laws to address workplace sexual harassment in Sri Lanka. Trade Unions must play a key role to pressurise the government to introduce laws to combat workplace sexual harassment. Meanwhile, Women’s Organisations and Civil Society should also lobby policy makers to take adequate action.

(The author is a women workers’ leader)