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Far too often, victims of sexual harassment will not come forward due to the power imbalance between the victim and sexual harasser in their workplace.
A supervisor, manager or even company CEO can get away with sexually harassing their employees due to the workplace power imbalance which creates a atmosphere of fear, keeping employees from speaking out.
Speaking out against someone in a position of power can cause a victim of sexual harassment to fear losing their job title and responsibilities, fear losing their schedules built around their family time, fear losing their reputation, and fear losing their job (retaliation).
A workplace power imbalance can occur anytime a person in a position of power uses their power over one of their employees to get them to do something that is not part of their job description or trajectory. An employee may do what is asked of them despite not wanting to because they fear workplace repercussions or retaliation if they do not. For example if a woman in the workplace reports their boss for making inappropriate jokes or flirtations, they may then be passed over for a job promotion.
If an employee can’t risk losing their job they may not be able to risk reporting sexual harassment against a workplace superior figure. Reporting sexual harassment to human resources should be a safe, confidential way to address workplace issues, but a company’s human resources department’s primary job is not to protect the employee, it’s to protect the company.
When the responsibility falls on the employee to address sexual harassment and seek out their own ways to stop sexual harassment in the workplace, the culture of workplace power imbalances will never be addressed. It needs to be the company’s responsibility to proactively prevent harassment and discrimination from occurring in the first place as well as provide easy to use tools for employers to report misconduct without repercussions.
Providing training and educational legal guides and resources to all employees, managers, and executives regarding workplace sexual harassment, harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and power imbalance, can deter unwanted workplace conduct and create a more positive workplace environment.
Have you been dealing with your own workplace power imbalance? Have you suffered harassment, discrimination, retaliation, or more? Send us a message or get a free consultation by filling out the form below.
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