Sexual Harassment of Working Women


Book Description

A comprehensive legal theory is needed to prevent the persistence of sexual harassment. Although requiring sexual favors as a quid pro quo for job retention or advancement clearly is unjust, the task of translating that obvious statement into legal theory is difficult. To do so, one must define sexual harassment and decide what the law's role in addressing harassment claims should be. In Sexual Harassment of Working Women,' Catharine Mac-Kinnon attempts all of this and more. In making a strong case that sexual harassment is sex discrimination and that a legal remedy should be available for it, the book proposes a new standard for evaluating all practices claimed to be discriminatory on the basis of sex. Although MacKinnon's "inequality" theory is flawed and its implications are not considered sufficiently, her formulation of it makes the book a significant contribution to the literature of sex discrimination. MacKinnon calls upon the law to eliminate not only sex dis- crimination but also most instances of sexism from society. She uses traditional theories in an admittedly strident manner, and relies upon both traditional and radical-feminist sources. The results of her effort are mixed. The book is at times fresh and challenging, at times needlessly provocative. -- https://www.jstor.org (Sep. 30, 2016).




Sexual Harassment of Women


Book Description

Over the last few decades, research, activity, and funding has been devoted to improving the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women in the fields of science, engineering, and medicine. In recent years the diversity of those participating in these fields, particularly the participation of women, has improved and there are significantly more women entering careers and studying science, engineering, and medicine than ever before. However, as women increasingly enter these fields they face biases and barriers and it is not surprising that sexual harassment is one of these barriers. Over thirty years the incidence of sexual harassment in different industries has held steady, yet now more women are in the workforce and in academia, and in the fields of science, engineering, and medicine (as students and faculty) and so more women are experiencing sexual harassment as they work and learn. Over the last several years, revelations of the sexual harassment experienced by women in the workplace and in academic settings have raised urgent questions about the specific impact of this discriminatory behavior on women and the extent to which it is limiting their careers. Sexual Harassment of Women explores the influence of sexual harassment in academia on the career advancement of women in the scientific, technical, and medical workforce. This report reviews the research on the extent to which women in the fields of science, engineering, and medicine are victimized by sexual harassment and examines the existing information on the extent to which sexual harassment in academia negatively impacts the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women pursuing scientific, engineering, technical, and medical careers. It also identifies and analyzes the policies, strategies and practices that have been the most successful in preventing and addressing sexual harassment in these settings.




Sexual Harassment


Book Description

At last a practical and thorough sourcebook for anyone faced with the ordeal of sexual harassment. Until two years ago, we were two ordinary working women with career goals and bright futures...Then suddenly everything changed. We encountered a situation we never thought would happen to us--we became victims of sexual harassment. While sexual harassment is increasingly in the headlines, it remains a confusing, isolating ordeal for the individuals whose lives it affects. In addition to the feelings of powerlessness, anger, and fear it often instills, a woman (or man) who is being sexually harassed is faced with a maze of professional, legal, and personal decisions. This book, written by two women who conducted intensive research in order to find their way through the maze, offers a lifeline of information and a safety net of support. With a balanced point of view and generous checklists, examples, and personal narratives, the book covers: Legal and practical definitions of what sexual harassment is--and not Whether and how to file a formal complaint Whether to hire a lawyer and what to expect from the legal process What retaliation is and how to fight it How to deal with the emotional stress, invasion of privacy, and career changes that often result from being sexually harassed This indispensable book sheds light on a difficult and little-understood problem.




Directions in Sexual Harassment Law


Book Description

div When it was published twenty-five years ago, Catharine MacKinnon’s pathbreaking work Sexual Harassment of Working Women had a major impact on the development of sexual harassment law. The U.S. Supreme Court accepted her theory of sexual harassment in 1986. Here MacKinnon collaborates with eminent authorities to appraise what has been accomplished in the field and what still needs to be done. An introductory essay by Reva Siegel considers how sexual harassment came to be regulated as sex discrimination. Contributors discuss how law can best address sexual harassment; the importance and definition of consent and unwelcomeness; issues of same-sex harassment; questions of institutional responsibility for sexual harassment in both employment and education settings; considerations of freedom of speech; effects of sexual harassment doctrine on gender and racial justice; and transnational approaches to the problem. An afterword by MacKinnon assesses the changes wrought by sexual harassment law in the past quarter century. /DIV




Handbook on Well-Being of Working Women


Book Description

This handbook provides an overview and synthesis of relevant literature related to the issue of the well-being of working women. This focus addresses a gap that currently exists in the quality-of-life and well-being fields. The work of the authors answers the following broad questions: Does gender matter in the well-being of working women? Do prejudices against and stereotypes of women still play a role in inter-personal interactions in the workplace that could hinder women from flourishing professionally? Does the organizational context, such as organizational culture, reward systems, and leadership, contribute to the well-being of working-women? What impact does the national context have on the well-being of working women? And finally, how can public policies help enhance the well-being of working women? These are important issues for academics, researchers, and graduate students interested in gender issues in the fields of management, sociology, psychology, social psychology, economics, and quality of life studies. Policy makers and practitioners will also find this book beneficial. Equitable treatment and outcomes for all, regardless of gender, remains a challenging goal to achieve, with various barriers in different contexts and different cultures, and this book provides strong coverage of this important topic of well-being of working women.




Sexual Harassment in the Workplace


Book Description

Simultaneously thorough and readable. This book is a must for anybody who needs to be up on the latest thinking on this complex and difficult topic. --Myra Strober, Stanford University Sexual harassment is a problem with a long past, but a short history. About 15 years after journalists and scholars first began writing about it, sexual harassment has become a household word and a topic of concern for employers and employees, and despite very little research funding, there is now a fair amount of data on this topic. Sexual Harassment in the Workplace provides a comprehensive look at what we know about sexual harassment. Editor Margaret S. Stockdale and a multidisciplinary cast of contributing authors have produced a volume that is grounded in theory, research, and practice but is accessible to researchers, advanced students, and practitioners in multiple disciplines. The topic of sexual harassment is one that is extremely timely and relevant for today′s students in women′s studies, organizational studies, and sociology. Sexual Harassment in the Workplace deals with a variety of issues and aspects of sexual harassment that will certainly spark discussion and debate.




The Sexual Harassment of Women in the Workplace, 1600 to 1993


Book Description

While sexual harassment of women in the workplace has been discussed for decades it is still a pervasive problem. This book looks at the history of that harassment from the 1600s (!) to the early 1990s, from long forgotten domestic servants in England of the 1600s to abused Japanese textile workers of 1900, to Anita Hill in 1991 America. Coverage is worldwide with emphasis on the United States and the period 1800 to the present. Harassment affects women from all walks of life; from unskilled to professional, those in traditionally female jobs, those in traditionally male jobs, and all the rest. Harassment occurs in factories, coal mines, construction sites, law offices, dental offices, government offices, Capitol Hill, and at every other work site. So bad was it in some factories that women took to carrying knives for self-protection. Women have put their economic existence on the line by striking over sexual harassment.




Women and Sexual Harassment


Book Description

Here is a valuable guide that saves researchers investigating sexual harassment in the workplace enormous amounts of time and money. Focusing on the hostile environment claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Women and Sexual Harassment is a complete resource tool. In one easy-to-use volume, it provides a detailed background and history of the hostile environment claim as well as an extensive guide on how to use and where to find the best resources available on this topic. Unlike some legal books, Chan’s book does not require cover-to-cover reading to access pertinent information. Anyone, whether they are interested in the specifics of the hostile environment claim or sexual harassment in general, will be able to locate the information they’re looking for with the help of this handy guide. It saves enormous amounts of time, effort, and money for researchers by providing extensive listings and evaluations of statutes, cases, agency decisions, law review articles, annotations, and books containing information on this subject. Readers can use the book to get a better understanding of the hostile environment claim or use it like a dictionary to pinpoint the specific resources that will be most useful to their area of research. Women and Sexual Harassment is logically divided into five complete parts to make it easy to use: Part 1: Clearly explains how to best use the book to access specific information. Part 2: Describes the history and present state of the hostile environment claim in a manner that is to the point, yet is more thorough than descriptions of the claim found in articles, cases, or other sources. Part 3: Research guide--Directs researchers to the best sources for information, categorized by type and area. Includes tips that will save hours in the library and will help researchers find the most up-to-the-minute articles and cases. Part 4: Bibliography of primary legal sources--Covers statutes, regulations, and case law on the hostile environment claim and sexual harassment. Part 5: Bibliography of secondary sources--Includes books, articles, surveys, and legislative history. The annotated bibliography, broken down by type of source and type of information, not only points researchers in the right direction but also steers them away from sources that seem valuable from their title, but are in fact not worthwhile. The insightful written analysis of the hostile environment claim alone provides researchers unfamiliar with the subject with a clearly written history and definition of the claim, its key elements, employer liability, statute of limitations, remedies, considerations of discovery and evidence, and related claims. Women and Sexual Harassment is an invaluable guide for all types of researchers including victims of sexual harassment considering filing a hostile environment claim, scholars interested in women’s issues, attorneys unfamiliar with this area, employers interested in limiting their liability by taking steps to prevent sexual harassment in their workplaces, and law students in any level of courses related to sex discrimination or sexual harassment.




Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment


Book Description

Sexual harassment is an issue in which feminists are usually thought to be on the plaintiff's side. But in 1993--amid considerable attention from the national academic community--Jane Gallop, a prominent feminist professor of literature, was accused of sexual harassment by two of her women graduate students. In Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment, Gallop tells the story of how and why she was charged with sexual harassment and what resulted from the accusations. Weaving together memoir and theoretical reflections, Gallop uses her dramatic personal experience to offer a vivid analysis of current trends in sexual harassment policy and to pose difficult questions regarding teaching and sex, feminism and knowledge. Comparing "still new" feminism--as she first encountered it in the early 1970s--with the more established academic discipline that women's studies has become, Gallop makes a case for the intertwining of learning and pleasure. Refusing to acquiesce to an imperative of silence that surrounds such issues, Gallop acknowledges--and describes--her experiences with the eroticism of learning and teaching. She argues that antiharassment activism has turned away from the feminism that created it and suggests that accusations of harassment are taking aim at the inherent sexuality of professional and pedagogic activity rather than indicting discrimination based on gender--that antiharassment has been transformed into a sensationalist campaign against sexuality itself. Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment offers a direct and challenging perspective on the complex and charged issues surrounding the intersection of politics, sexuality, feminism, and power. Gallop's story and her characteristically bold way of telling it will be compelling reading for anyone interested in these issues and particularly to anyone interested in the ways they pertain to the university.




The Women's Movement Against Sexual Harassment


Book Description

This book recounts the story of how a diverse social movement placed sexual harassment on the public agenda in the 1970s and 1980s. The collaboration of women from varying racial, economic, and geographic backgrounds strengthened the movement by representing the experiences and perspectives of a broad range of women, and incorporating their resources and strategies for social change. Black women; middle-class feminists; women breaking into construction, coal mining, and other non-traditional occupations; and women in pink-collar and working-class white-collar jobs all helped to convince governments to adopt public policies against sexual harassment in the United States. Based on interviews and original research, this book shows how the movement against sexual harassment fundamentally changed American life in ways that continue to advance women's opportunities today.