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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) provides a clear explanation of what to report about acts of sexual harassment (Equal Employment Opportunity, 2019). According to the EEOC (2019), it is unlawful to harass a person (an applicant or employee) because of that person’s sex. Harassment can include “sexual harassment” or unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature (EEOC, 2019). Harassment does not have to be of a sexual nature, however, and can include offensive remarks about a person’s sex. For example, it is illegal to harass a woman by making offensive comments about women in general (EEOC, 2019). Sexual harassment and sex-based claims are a variation of types of unacceptable behaviors. It is a misconception that the majority of sexual and sex-based harassment is aggressive, forceful, and acts of violent behavior. Many of these claims are inappropriate verbal occurrences of name-calling or written statements or actions that may be physically threatening (Blum, 2019).
Organizations have seen alarming statistics in sexual harassment and sex-based EEOC claims. In 2017, approximately 27,000 workplace harassment claims filed with the EEOC. With those workplace harassment claims, over half were sex-based claims and approximately, 6,800 were sexual harassment cases (U.S. EEOC, 2018). The majority of sexual harassment and sex-based claims are from women. Nonetheless, males make up 20% of sexual harassment and sex-based claims (U.S. EEOC, 2018). Alarming statistics depict African American women filing the majority of sexual harassment claims (15.3 charges per 100,000 workers), and 1 in 17 sexual harassment charges filed with the EEOC also alleged racial discrimination (Rossie, Tucker, and Patrick 2018). These allegations are from victims that were determined to report their experience of abuse, ill treatment, and offense based on their gender or were sexually victimized. Understandably, these cases addressed were able to move into EEOC investigations. The aggregate number of claims filed that dropped or mediated outside of EEOC guidelines cannot be determined. Inarguably, U.S EEOC advised that with the unsurmountable claims that are processed annually, approximately, 75% of victims still do not come forth to file a complaint (Patel, 2018). Most victims find that filing a claim or complaint will result in retaliation, hostile work environment, further harassment from their accuser or embarrassment and humiliation from peers (Patel, 2018). Unfortunately, there are negative consequences associated with filing sexual harassment or sex-based claims that most victims prefer to avoid bringing light to the incident. Moreover, having such experiences does not quite go unnoticed. Most victims find themselves losing focus at their job, experiencing lack of motivation or trying to transition into another position or company (Patel, 2018). Quid pro quo and a hostile work environment are legal definitions of sexual harassment (Boyer, 2018). Quid pro quo refers to behaviors by a superior who promotes or demotes an employee contingent upon sexual favors in the workplace (Boyer, 2018).