Sexual Harassment In The Workplace: Hostile Or Offensive Environment

Sexual harassment comes in different forms in the workplace and academic settings (Crooks & Baur, 2014). People can be met with unwanted sexual comments, demands, or advances (Lecture 3, 2011). The two types of harassment include: quid pro quo and “hostile or offensive environment”. Quid pro quo is where a person is given an ultimatum to comply with unwanted sexual advances in order to keep a job, get a promotion, or get a good grade (Crooks & Baur, 2014). A “hostile or offensive environment” is caused when the work or academic environment is hostile, abusive, or uncomfortable because of the co-workers, teachers, or students engaging in persistent and inappropriate behaviors (Crooks & Baur, 2014). As a group, we looked at five different scenarios and discussed if they could be labeled as sexual harassment. We also discussed the possibility of sexual harassment being an issue in each scenario if the gender roles were reversed. …show more content…
The men have filled the walls of the break room with women in swimsuits and engage in conversations that make the woman very uncomfortable. We decided that this is an example of sexual harassment. The work environment is hostile and offensive for the woman. The effects of the sexual harassment at her job begin to show when the woman begins to have trouble staying alert for her job. Job performance is one of the negative effects of sexual harassment in the workplace (Crooks & Baur, 2014). If the gender roles in this situation were reversed, we still think it would be sexual harassment. The man would feel just as uncomfortable as this woman did to eat in the break room each day and the hostile or offensive environment could affect his