Reporting Sexual Harassment to Your Employer

If you haven't been successful stopping sexual harassment by yourself, you must ask your employer for support:

Report the behavior to the appropriate person

Usually that is your supervisor or the human resources department. You can bring a friend with you if that will make you feel more comfortable.

The person in charge should be able to offer you options about how the situation could be handled, including informal and formal actions that the you and/or the institution could take. For example:

• the institution could contact your unit or department without mentioning your name and provide training, noting that the institution has a concern about sexual harassment in that unit, especially if the harassment has been public or several persons have complained.
• A letter can also be sent to the harasser enclosing the policy and reminding the person that the institution will not tolerate sexual harassment,
• or the person in charge might speak directly to that person, informing them that their behaviors might violate the institution's policy and federal law.

The person in charge should make a statement about the prohibition of retaliation, along with examples of retaliation.

The person in charge may also be able, if you are willing, to arrange a carefully prepared meeting with you and the harasser to confront the issue and work out some sort of resolution. There is no requirement in law, nor should there be one in the policy, that you must meet with the harasser if you do not want to.

Sometimes mediation is offered as a way to resolve sexual harassment issues. Traditional mediation is not always appropriate and should be used with great care.

If you decide that you want to engage in mediation:

• Be sure that mediator is experienced in mediating sexual harassment complaints
• Ask what they hope to achieve by mediation
• Have them describe in great detail what the process will involve.

In some instances mediation techniques are used although the parties involved never meet. The "mediator" goes back and forth between you and the harasser, talking to each separately, in order to work out a resolution.

Keep records of all contacts with the employer. If you feel your complaint is not taken seriously or handled appropriately, go up the administrative ladder and talk to someone else.

File a formal complaint with your employer

• Read the policy and talk to knowledgeable people about how the policy operates and what has happened in the past.
• Ask to talk to someone who has filed a formal complaint and used the procedures.
• Ask in advance to ensure that both you and the accused will have the same rights and access to information. (In some proceedings the accused has been able to bring an advocate or an attorney to the proceedings, and/or to have character witnesses while the person bringing the complaint was not allowed to do so.)
• Ask about time frames, and how long it will take for the entire process, including any appeals if allowed.
• Confirm any oral conversations in writing - by writing the person who informed you what your understanding is, and end the note with a statement such as "If I do not hear from you by next Friday, I will assume my understanding about the process is correct."

File a lawsuit

If informal methods such as those listed above have not stopped the harassment, are inappropriate (the harassment is too serious for informal procedures such as attempted rape), or you have other reasons such as wanting the individual to be punished, you may want to file a lawsuit. Consult with an attorney or contact the EEOC, or your state's anti-discrimination agency.

Sexual Harassment Message Board for more help