Office/Workplace Settings
Author: Suman Kakar
Editor: Gina Robertiello
Date: 2021
From: Sexual Harassment and Misconduct: An Encyclopedia
Publisher: ABC-Clio
Document Type: Topic overview
Pages: 3
Content Level: (Level 4)
Full Text:
Office/Workplace Settings
Sexual harassment in the workplace has been around for as long as workplaces themselves. For
ages, some employees—both women and men—have endured toxic office environments filled with
sexual harassment in the forms of sexual innuendo and comments, unwanted sexual advances, and in
some cases even sexual abuse or assault.
The first serious discussions of workplace/office sexual harassment—and about potential reforms to
reduce the frequency of such incidents—came in the late 1960s and early 1970s, amid women’s rising
workforce participation and burgeoning feminist consciousness. According to U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC), this behavior violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title
VII applies to employers with fifteen or more employees, including state and local governments. It also
applies to employment agencies and to labor organizations as well as the federal government.
However, despite the Civil Rights Act and other legal efforts, its proscription in legal jurisdictions
around the world, and through social movements, sexual harassment continues to be experienced by
many women and some men in industries of all shapes, sizes, and business sectors.
In “Findings on Workplace Sexual Harassment from the 2018 Empire State Poll,” a report issued by
the Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) School’s Worker Institute, researchers reported that quid pro
quo (an exchange of service for something of equal value) workplace sexual harassment impacts
about one in ten New York State residents. Social movements such as Time’s Up and #MeToo as well
as recent high-profile allegations in the media, government, Congress, and prominent firms have
brought the often hidden and not talked about issue
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of sexual harassment to the forefront. However, it persists despite social awareness.
According to the Center for Employment Equity Report, which was issued in 2018, approximately five
million employees are sexually harassed at work every year. The overwhelming majority (99.8 percent)
of people who experience sexual harassment at work never file formal charges. Of those who file
formal charges, very few (less than fifteen hundred per year), go to court. This report also indicates
there is a fear that reporting or filing a case in court can backfire and lead to retaliation or other
negative consequences for victims. The report stated that most employers react punitively toward
people who file formal sexual harassment charges, with 68 percent of sexual harassment charges
including an allegation of employer retaliation. This rate is highest for Black women, and 64 percent of
sexual harassment charges are associated with job loss. The report documents that 68 percent of
sexual harassment charges include an allegation of employer retaliation, and 64 percent of sexual
harassment charges are associated with threats of job loss. Employer retaliation was reported most
often by Black women, while threats of job loss were highest for white women and white men.
Two U.S. Supreme Court decisions made in 1998 regarding sexual harassment changed the
landscape of workplace harassment and the laws against sexual harassment. Faragher v. City of Boca
Raton and Burlington Industries v. Ellerth both played significant roles in determining how sexual
harassment cases are handled today. In the Faragher case, municipal lifeguard Beth Ann Faragher
alleged that during her time working near Miami in the late 1980s, her male supervisors sexually
harassed and assaulted her and other female lifeguards by groping them, entering the women’s locker
room without knocking, asking women to shower with them, and miming oral sex. The court decided
that the city was not liable for the harassment or assault, as City Hall had been unaware of the
offenses when they were happening. In the case of Burlington Industries, Kimberly Ellerth alleged that
a high-ranking executive at her company made comments about her physical appearance and said
that he could make her job “very hard or very easy,” implying that Ellerth’s corporate success
depended on her willingness to sleep with her boss. Although Ellerth was promoted by her own merit,
a lower court decided that she had experienced quid pro quo harassment, even though the threatened
retribution never materialized.
Since the #MeToo Movement, there have been some very public examples of sexual harassment in
the office setting. Broadcast personality Bill O’Reilly, for example, was ousted from Fox News in April
2017 after multiple sexual harassment allegations against him came to light. The Fox News host was
said to have agreed to a $32 million settlement with a former network analyst, in addition to paying,
with the help of Fox News, an alleged $13 million to stop five other women from publicly accusing him
of harassment.
Matt Lauer was fired from his job as the cohost of NBC’s Today show in late November 2017 after a
female subordinate reported inappropriate sexual behavior by him during the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
Soon, more women came forward, including one who said he sexually assaulted her in his office.
Lauer’s accusers alleged that his harassment continued after the games. The New York Times
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reported that two more women lodged accusations against Lauer following his dismissal from NBC,
which the network confirmed.
Another prominent case concerned UBS Financial, which paid out a massive settlement to a female
employee who was sexually harassed in its offices. That case involved Carla Ingraham, who was a
senior client service associate at UBS Financial Services in Kansas City, Missouri. Ingraham claimed
that in 2003, a male broker called her his “work wife” and made comments about getting “laid” on a
specific weekend. The male broker also commented on her physical appearance, conversed about
favorite sexual positions, and suggested that she perform oral sex on a client. UBS Financial fired
Ingram in 2009, one week after she filed her amended sexual discrimination suit. After Ingraham sued,
a state court jury awarded her $10,592,000 in damages, agreeing that she had been sexually
harassed and finding that UBS had retaliated against her. A judge reduced the award to $8,439,941,
including attorney fees and other expenses, but the award was vacated in January 2012 when
attorneys reached a “confidential resolution” of the case.
Suman Kakar
See also: Ailes, Roger ; Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ; Faragher v. City of
Boca Raton ; Lauer, Matt ; #MeToo Movement ; Quid Pro Quo ; Time’s Up Movement ; Title VII of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Further Reading
Catt, M. 2019. “ILR Study: Workplace Sexual Harassment Impacts 1 in 10 in N.Y.” Cornell Chronicle,
February 21. https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2019/02/ilr-study-workplace-sexual-harassment-impacts-
1-10-ny .
McCann, C., D. Tomaskovic-Devey, and M. V. Badgett. 2018. “Employer’s Responses to Sexual
Harassment.” Center for Employment Equity, December.
https://www.umass.edu/employmentequity/employers-responses-sexual-harassment .
McCoy, K. 2017. “Sexual Harassment: Here Are Some of the Biggest Cases.” USA Today, October 25.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2017/10/25/sexual-harassment-here-some-biggest-
cases/791439001/ .
Ortiz, E., and C. Siemaszko. 2017. “NBC News Fires Matt Lauer after Sexual Misconduct Review.”
NBC News, November 19. https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/sexual-misconduct/nbc-news-fires-
today-anchor-matt-lauer-after-sexual-misconduct-n824831 .
Steel, E., and M. S. Schmidt. 2017. “Bill O’Reilly Settled New Harassment Claim, Then Fox Renewed
His Contract.” New York Times, October 21. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/business/media/bill-
oreilly-sexual-harassment.html .
Waxman, O. B. 2018. “The Surprising Consequences of the Supreme Court Cases That Changed
Sexual Harassment Law 20 Years Ago.” Time, June 26. http://time.com/5319966/sexual-harassment-
scotus-anniversary/ .
Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2021 ABC-CLIO, LLC
Source Citation (APA 7th Edition)
Kakar, S. (2021). Office/Workplace Settings. In G. Robertiello (Ed.), Sexual Harassment and
Misconduct: An Encyclopedia (pp. 219-221). ABC-CLIO. https://link-gale-
com.mjc.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/CX8252400098/GVRL?u=modestojc_main&sid=bookmark-
GVRL&xid=0f59f585
Gale Document Number: GALE|CX8252400098