It's been one year since the New York Times exposed reports of sexual harassment against movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, effectively ending his near 30-year run in the industry.
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Since the report, more than 80 more women, including actresses Rose McGowan, Angelina Jolie and Gwyneth Paltrow, have come forward with allegations regarding Weinstein's inappropriate advances.
In a tweet directed at Amazon exec Jeff Bezos last year, McGowan wrote she repeatedly told his head of studios not to work with Weinstein. “HW raped me,” she wrote.
Weinstein was ousted as CEO of his company, which filed for bankruptcy in March. In May, law enforcement officials said he will face criminal sex act and rape charges. He plead not guilty to charges of rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse and sexual misconduct, his attorney, Benjamin Braffman, said.
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Soon after the Times' report, actress Alyssa Milano tweeted, "If you've been sexually harassed or assaulted write 'me too' as a reply to this tweet." The hashtag #MeToo spread like wildfire online with more than 500,000 mentions on Twitter and 12 million times on Facebook in the first 24 hours alone. It was a rallying cry for women and men who have experienced some type of sexual harassment or assault.
» RELATED: #MeToo: Women share harrowing accounts of sexual assault, harassment
Since then, multiple high-profile men (Brett Kavanaugh, Kevin Spacey, Matt Lauer, Roy Moore) in media, politics and beyond have faced allegations ranging from inappropriate behavior to forced sexual misconduct to rape.
Some — but not all — have been fired from their companies or resigned themselves amid the allegations.
Sexual harassment is not uncommon in the workplace. In a 2015 survey of 2,235 full-time and part-time female employees, Cosmopolitan found one in three women experienced sexual harassment at work at some point in their lives.
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Here’s what you should know about sexual harassment in the workplace, according to the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Department of Labor:
What is sexual harassment?
Generally, sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. It violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination in the workplace on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin and religion.
Title VII applies to employers with 15 or more employees.
According to the Department of Labor, there are two forms of sexual harassment:
- Quid pro quo: Involves an employment decision based on submission to the sexual harassment, such as promotion, assignment or keeping your job
- Hostile work environment: Sexual harassment makes workplace hostile, intimidating, abusive or offensive
Are there state laws with more protections against sexual harassment in addition to Title VII?
Some states have adopted stronger protections. Georgia is not one of them.
Harassment can include, but is not limited to:
- unwelcome sexual advances
- requests for sexual favors
- other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature
- non-sexual but offensive remarks about a person's sex
Harassment is illegal when:
- conduct is unwelcome
- conduct is "based on the victim's protected status"
- subjectively abusive to person affected
- "severe and pervasive" enough to create a work environment that a "reasonable person" would find hostile
What factors are used to determine of harassment is “severe and pervasive” enough?
- frequency of unwelcome conduct
- severity of conduct
- whether conduct was physically threatening/humiliating or "mere offensive utterance"
- where conduct "unreasonably" interfered with work performance
- effect on employee's psychological well-being
- whether harasser was a superior at the organization
From the Department of Labor:
Each factor is considered, but none are required or dispositive. Hostile work environment cases are often difficult to recognize, because the particular facts of each situation determine whether offensive conduct has crossed the line from "ordinary tribulations of the workplace, such as the sporadic use of abusive language . . . and occasional teasing," to unlawful harassment.
However, the intent of the Department of Labor's Harassing Conduct Policy is to provide a process for addressing incidents of unwelcome conduct long before they become severe and pervasive enough to create a hostile work environment under the law.
Does the gender of the victim or harasser matter?
No. Both the victim and harasser can be either a woman or a man — or both can be the same sex.
Does the title of the harasser matter?
No. The harasser can be the victim’s supervisor, a supervisor in another department, a coworker, an employee of a separate employer, a client or customer.
What about teasing?
According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the law doesn’t prohibit simple teasing, offhand comments or isolated incidents that are “not very serious.”
However, teasing becomes illegal when:
- the behavior becomes frequent or severe
- the behavior creates a hostile or offensive work environment
- the behavior results in an adverse employment decision (victim is fired or demoted)
What if you weren’t directly harassed, but you feel affected?
You do not have to be the victim of direct harassment to be affected by the offensive conduct. It is still considered sexual harassment, according to the EEOC.
What should you do if you experience sexual harassment?
Inform the harasser at once that the behavior is unwelcome, then directly use “any employer complaint mechanism or grievance system available.”
This may include reaching out to your direct manager or employer or talking to your company’s human resources department. Check your employee handbook for more information.
If you really can't find someone you trust, labor and law employment attorney Nannina Angioni suggests you contact the Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
Experts also recommend filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Find directions on the EEOC's website.
You may also want to continue keeping a record of the discriminatory activity and seek support from friends and family.
What if speaking out is too difficult?
“Some victims will never report abuse and they have that right,” psychologist Nekeshia Hammond told NBC News. “It’s a case by case thing and sometimes there’s a reason for staying silent — if you feel your safety is threatened, or if you’re literally on the verge of having an emotional breakdown and will be unable to function. But you need to reach out to someone.”
Hammond recommends calling the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673), which includes free services and confidential suppot.
Can staying silent work against me, legally?
According to the Department of Labor, “the department cannot correct harassing conduct if a supervisor, manager or other Department official does not become aware of it.”
In fact, when an employee “unreasonably fails to report harassing conduct,” the department can use this as a defense against a suit for harassment.
Additionally, if you file a complaint with the EEOC, it’s recommended you do so within 180 days of the discriminatory activity.
How does the EEOC investigate allegations of sexual harassment?
The department looks at the circumstances of the misconduct, the nature of the sexual advances and the context in which the incidents allegedly occurred.
“A determination on the allegations is made from the facts on a case-by-case basis,” the EEOC website states.
How can companies stop sexual harassment from occurring?
According to the EEOC, prevention is the best tool. Employers should be vocal about the intolerance of sexual harassment and establish a complaint and grievance system.
Learn more about workplace sexual harassment at dol.gov and eeoc.gov.
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