Sexual harassment is harassment of a sexual nature, typically in the workplace or other setting where raising objections or refusing may have negative consequences.
In American employment law, it is any unwelcome sexual advance or conduct on the job, having the effect of making the workplace intimidating, hostile or offensive.
The definition of the phrase sexual harassment can be broad and controversial, depending on each individual's opinion of what sexual harassment is. While typical sexual harassment behaviour usually includes unwanted touching of a co-worker's private parts, lewd comments, talk about gender superiority, sexual jokes, etc., some companies have reported that they have had to fire employees (after a co-worker had complained of sexual harassment) for such actions as telling the complaining co-worker how good he or she looks for that co-worker's date with another person, or for simply handling what seemed, to the fired employee, to be just a harmless compliment.
Two forms of sexual harassment have been defined:
- quid pro quo (Latin: this for that)
- hostile work environment
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