Impact of Sexual Harassment

Many organizations, and even individuals, tend to ignore the issue of sexual harassment, claiming that it is not wise to blow up such cases. They perceive that these are small parts of everyday life and should be dealt with directly by the two individuals involved. However, this is easier said than done. It is not only the act of sexual harassment that needs to be considered, but also the other dimensions, including that of power, intimidation and suppression that make the situation complex and difficult to confront.

The impact of sexual harassment on the person being harassed is often much greater than one may think. It can impact a person physically, emotionally, economically and socially and affect one's career and academic performance or potential. The table below lists out the impact of sexual harassment on the harassed.

Impact of Sexual Harassment on Harassed
Impact on Career		Emotional Impact		Physical Impact		Financial Impact
	Quitting one's job		Self-blame and guilt		Insomnia or other sleep disturbances		Threatened or actual loss of income and/or benefits
	Reduced productivity		Distress		Change in appetite		Threatened or actual loss of promotions or merit increases
	Decreased concentration		Denial		Headaches		Threatened or actual loss of opportunities
	Absenteeism		Mood swings		Stress-related ailments		Threatened or actual loss of recommendations
	Decreased interest in work or study		Depression		Stomach ailments		Decrease in professional reputation or status
	Interruption of career		Fear		Decreased energy		Threatened or actual loss of job
			Anxiety		Skin and hair problem
			Self-doubt		Work or study unit disrupted by gossip, frustration and choosing sides
			Irritability		Higher employee turnover
			Feelings of isolation		Absenteeism
			Feelings of intimidation		Retraining
			Anger		Low morale
			Restlessness		Decreased productivity
			Uncertainty over the future		Litigation – loss of time and money
			Loss of ambition		Increased cost of benefits
			Re-living of incident(s) in one's head		Tarnished public image
Social Impact
	Physical or emotional withdrawal from friends, family and co-workers
	Difficulty interacting with others
	Dependency on another person(s) for support
	Limiting of social interactions or self-isolation because one feels unsafe leaving the home or entering work, study or other space in which the sexual harassment occurred
	Generalised fears of people or things that remind one of the harassment
	Others may distance themselves from a complainant because they don't want to get involved or don't understand what she/he is experiencing
	Alcohol or drug use/abuse

Besides, the impact on the woman, the impact on the organisation can also be devastating with long-term negative consequences.

• Costly investigation and litigation
• Negative exposure and publicity
• Embarrassing depositions
• Increased absenteeism
• Lowered employee morale
• Reduced productivity
• Decreased efficiency
• Higher employee turn over
• Erosion of organisation’s brand names, goodwill, and public image
• Negative impact on stock price

Source: Farrell, M., T. Saxena, J. Thekkudan and P. Pathak, 2008, Engendering Workplaces: Framework for a Gender Policy, New Delhi, PRIA.
Raymonds, N., 2003, Sexual harassment at the Workplace, Combat Law, Volume 2, Issue 3, August-September 2003, http:www.indiatogether.org/combatlaw/vol2/issue3/harass.htm (accessed January 2008)