The Alarming Trend of Sexual Harassment Occurrences in the Workplace and What Can Be Done

Researches have shown workplace Sexual Harassment (SH) as indeed a source of stress at workplaces. If he or she is a victim of SH, he or she is not the only one. Everyone has the rights to voice out, as we have our human rights. The purpose of this paper is to create an awareness of SH in workplaces due to its impact on each victim’s health, psychologically and physically. Most of the victims keep it as secret in order to avoid embarrassment. Yet, these embarrassments then lead to a higher percentage of workplace sexual harassment. This paper has reviewed a total of 25 journal articles, regarding the percentage of workplace SH victims, the society’s stance on it, the characteristics of victims, the criterion to judge Sexual Harassment, the influences of SH perceptions, the influences for the intention of SH intervention, the consequences of SH on victims and the effects of implementing training and policies. In some employers’ point of view, the contribution of training and policies to prevent workplace Sexual Harassment incidents are small. Yet, these small contributions on the other hand create a domino effect in long term view and are better than no action taken. Therefore, companies should implement training and policies as one of the strategies to protect employees from experiencing SH incidents as well as to uphold the company’s reputation.

The Alarming Trend of Sexual Harassment Occurrences in the Workplace and What Can Be Done Keywords:

Quid pro quo harassment , hostile work environment harassment , depression