The unspoken side-effect of junk status in SA: increased sexual harassment at work
International research points to an alarming consequence of spiralling economic conditions – an increase in sexual harassment in the workplace, say Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr’s Aadil Patel, Fatima Moosa and Mariella Noriega Del Valle.
According to the trio, the difference between officially reported figures of sexual harassment and the reality in workplaces is staggering – where about half of women and 10-20% of men are sexually harassed at work, and only 6% of those who face harassment actually lodging a complaint.
However, with the economy under strain, these already-shocking trends are likely to worsen. Unsurprisingly, this is primarily due to the fact that during such tough financial times sexual-harassment victims worry about job security, resulting in severe under-reporting.
The uptick in sexual harassment is also due to the harassers insecurities, noted the trio.
“Another one of the reasons sexual harassment spikes during tough economic times is that such downturns threaten gender identities,” they said.
“While some cases fall outside of the usual narrative, in general, challenges to a harasser’s status as the prototypical ‘male’ results in them dominating others to compensate for their own insecurities.”
They also noted that the detrimental effects of sexual harassment do not end at the victims of such abuses. Organisations take a knock too.
“The consequences of sexual harassment in the workplace include lower levels of work satisfaction, stagnating productivity, decreased staff morale leading to increased absenteeism and high labour turnover.”
“These repercussions once again emphasise that HR practitioners and company leadership can no longer afford to adopt a reactive approach to sexual harassment. Ultimately, an organisation’s entire culture needs to drive home the message that sexual harassment will not be tolerated in any form.”
What sexual harassment means in South Africa
Werksmans’ Andre van Heerden and Jacques van Wyk recently broke down a case of sexual harassment in South Africa and the implications for both the parties involved and the employer.
“In the case of Liberty Group limited v Margaret Masango (07 March 2017) the Labour Appeal Court had to determine whether the employer, Liberty Group Limited (“Liberty”) should have been held liable for sexual harassment committed by one of its employees,” said van Heerden and van Wyk.
“This required a determination of, among others, the legal provisions of section 60 of the EEA.”
Section 6(3) of the EEA provides that “harassment of an employee is a form of unfair discrimination and is prohibited on any one, or a combination of grounds of unfair discrimination listed in” section 6(1).
Item 4 of the Code of Amended Good Practice on the Handling of Sexual Harassment Cases (“Code”) establishes the following test for the determination of sexual harassment:
“…unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that violated the rights of an employee and constitutes a barrier to equity in the workplace, taking into account all of the following factors:
- whether the harassment is on the prohibited grounds of sex and/or gender and/or sexual orientation;
- whether the sexual conduct was unwelcome;
- the nature and extent of the sexual conduct; and
- the impact of the sexual conduct on the employee.
The Labour Court subsequently found in Masango’s favour holding that she had indeed been sexually harassed.
The Labour Court also found that Liberty was made aware of the sexual harassment before she had resigned and failed to take the necessary steps at such time. As a result, Liberty was held to be liable in terms of section 60 of the EEA.
“This case highlights the need for an employer to respond appropriately when allegations of sexual harassment have been reported to it by its employees,” the lawyers said.
“This requires that an employer must consult all relevant parties and must take the necessary steps to eliminate the alleged conduct and comply with the provisions of the EEA and the Code.”
“Should the employer fail to do so it may be held liable for the acts of the employee(s) who committed the acts of sexual harassment.”
Read: 5 money worries that are stressing out middle-class South Africans
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