What is sexual harassment? Is it when someone makes any unwanted physical contacts? Yes but not only. Sexual harassment is also about unpleasant behaviour along with sexual comments. Under the Criminal Amendment Act 2013, any kind of sexual harassment is unlawful and consequences will be faced. If you are a proven victim of sexual harassment, you may claim for monetary damages. Nowadays we hear many reported cases of sexual harassment, therefore in this articles we will give you some ideas about how you can deal with sexual harrasment. .
You are not the one to be blamed
If you are facing any sexual harrasment at at work or at school or in any public places you have to learn to stand for your rights. You are not the one to be blamed, your assailant is. One of the prime steps is not to quit or to escape. You should stay at your work place or school and stand for your rights. Many employees tend to leave their jobs after such incidents beause they feel ashamed. They either feel too shy or embarrassed to face the office people or feel demoralised. You should stay and ask for the sexual harassment policy. They are rules and these are made to protect you.
Write a detailed ananlysis of whar happened
Write everything that happened: who, in which situation, which words or acts. Collect everything you can and you will feel more confident.. You must give a detailed analysis of what happened. Narrate all the sexual comments, the harasser gesture, the time and how it happened. It will help you to have a better argument to defend your case.. Therefore you need to contact the police where you can lodge a formal complaint
Communicate with a responsable.
Coming on the second point is that you should search the harassment act policy of the office or school. Read it and understand it. Then contact your employer or the head of your university and tell them what happened. If your employer does not abide to the harassment policy rules then you may seek legal help to claim damages. But keep in mind it is very important for them to keep a good reputation so they will have in mind to help you so that it never happens again.
Police action
Frequently the court says that for an action to be taken, there should have been a series or frequent sexual incident for an action to take place. A single comment or grope or anything inappropriate will not be enough to sue the defendant. Your legal call will be taken into consideration therefore its worth reporting.
Be prepared to face your harasser again!
Even if you meet your harassor again you should not feel ashamed or shy to face him again. You should continue your job.He will the one to feel ashamed or unconfortable. Never forget this. You were in your rights and you defended yourself. But if you are to ashamed to face him, you will not be able to sue for violation and he won.
Keep reporting the case
If you feel that no actions are being taken, do not hesitate to report the case another time. Sometime if people do not feel any kind of pressure or obligation they postpone the work. Therefore if you feel your employer is not keen to help you in the matter, keep reporting the case till he abides to it.
You are not alone
One thing that you definitely need to understand is that you are not alone. Talk to your family and make them understand the problem. Another support is the legal system. Make sure you take full advantage of it. Remember you are not the first victim neither the last! In this world, sexual harassment is becoming a frequent issue. Therefore it’s each individual right to demand for her rights. Staying quite will worsen the situation, so be confident and stand up for your rights.
Niharika Essoo
