Basically,  sexual  harassment  means  bothering someone in a sexual way. For a person’s behavior to be considered  sexual  harassment,  it  must  meet  three criteria: 1.  Be unwelcome 2.  Be sexual in nature 3.  Occur in or impact on the work environment UNWELCOME BEHAVIOR Unwelcome  behavior  is  behavior  that  a  person doesn’t ask for and considers undesirable or offensive. Not everyone has the same perception (idea) of what is undesirable or offensive. What’s okay for some people isn’t okay for others. So, whose perception should be used, the person who is giving the unwelcome behavior or the person receiving  (recipient)  the  unwelcome  behavior?  The person  receiving  the  behavior  is  being  affected; therefore, it’s the recipient’s perception that counts. If the  recipient  is  a  reasonable  person  and  not  overly sensitive,  behavior  which  the  recipient  finds unwelcome should be stopped. From the view of the recipient, this is a  reasonable personal standard  and is really no more than using common sense. BEHAVIOR WHICH IS SEXUAL IN NATURE Behavior that is sexual in nature is fairly easy to determine.  For  example,  if  someone  tells  sexually explicit jokes, displays sexually suggestive pictures, and talks about sex, that person’s behavior is sexual in nature. Some  people  consider  other  behaviors,  such  as touching, to be sexual in some cases but not in others. Not all touching is sexual in nature. However, touching certain parts of the body or done suggestively is sexual in  nature.  Again,  using  common  sense  is  normally enough to tell whether a certain behavior is sexual in nature. OCCUR IN OR IMPACT ON THE WORK ENVIRONMENT For sexual harassment to occur, unwelcome sexual behavior  must  occur  in  or  impact  on  the  work environment. Quid Pro Quo (This for That) When someone is offered or denied something that is  work-connected  in  return  for  submitting  to  or rejecting unwelcome sexual behavior, that person is being subjected to a type of sexual harassment known as quid pro quo  (“this for that”). A  person  isn’t  promoted  because  he/she  didn’t submit  to  unwelcome  sexual  behavior.  This  is  an example  of   quid  pro  quo   sexual  harassment.   Other examples include the loss of a job, a demotion, or a bad performance eval. Basically, if a work-connected decision is made because a person is being subjected to or has rejected unwelcome  sexual  behavior,  sexual  harassment  has occurred. Normally, this is from a senior to a junior, because the senior person can offer something. Hostile Environment If  unwelcome  sexual  behavior  of  one  or  more persons in a workplace interferes with another person’s work  performance,  sexual  harassment  has  occurred. Now,  suppose  the  behavior  makes  the  workplace offensive, intimidating, or abusive to another person, whether or not work performance is affected. This type of sexual harassment is called hostile environment. The following  are  examples  of  a  person’s  behavior  that could create a hostile environment: Use of sexually explicit or sexually offensive language. Display sexually oriented posters or calendars of nude or partially clad individuals. Touch someone in a suggestive manner (that is, intentionally  brushing  against  or  pinching  a person). Give someone unwelcome letters, cards, or gifts of a personal nature that have sexual overtones. Give unwanted or uninvited pressure for dates. Some types of unwelcome sexual behavior don’t have  to  create  a  hostile  environment  to  be  sexual harassment.  If  a  person  fondles  or  gropes  another person in the workplace, the behavior is considered sexual harassment. This behavior is considered sexual 1-20 Student Notes: