"Personal Service, Professional Advice"
Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment is unwelcome, unsolicited and unwanted sexual behaviour that offends, humiliates, embarrasses, intimidates or otherwise causes distress. Sexual harassment is illegal under State and Commonwealth anti-discrimination legislation
Sexual harassment can be very damaging, both to the individual and to the employer.
We provide advice as to what types of behaviour could be deemed to be sexual harassment.
Sexual harassment is damaging to the person who is harassed because it may:
- create very high stress levels
- affect their mental and physical health
- affect their work performance, even to the extent that they may lose their jobs, cause them to transfer or resign to avoid the harassment
Sexual harassment is damaging to the employer’s business because:
- it may result in absenteeism, low morale, and a breakdown in communications and trust between staff and management
- it may result in the loss of valuable staff
- there may be industrial action if a union has to become involved
- it will damage the reputation of the business
- it is very expensive to resolve problems related to sexual harassment. Costs may include sick leave, the time taken to investigate complaints, the costs of recruiting and training replacement staff, preparation of legal cases and financial compensation to the complainant.
We can assist, please call our office today.