Workers decide to take legal action for various reasons, whether they believe they were discriminated against or have not been paid appropriately. However, sex-based harassment allegations can be especially challenging for employees and the companies they work for. As a result, it is important for business owners to understand the prevalence of this offense in workplaces across the country and look for ways to prevent sex-based harassment from occurring in the future. Sex-based harassment, which is related to a person’s sex, takes different forms and includes sexual harassment
According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, there were 12,860 sex-based harassment charges filed with their agency during the fiscal year 2016. It is also essential to point out that these statistics do not take into account sexual harassment charges filed with either a local or state agency. These figures represent an increase in comparison to previous years, such as 2014, when 12,146 sex-based harassment charges were filed with the EEOC.
For an employer who is dealing with allegations of sex-based harassment, gender discrimination, sexual harassment, or another type of workplace violation, making sense of the situation can be difficult. However, it is pivotal to figure out the best course of action while taking steps to stop any instances of sex-based harassment from occurring in the future. Aside from having a negative impact on productivity in the workplace and causing emotional distress for employees, this form of harassment can also result in significant financial penalties as well, which highlights how crucial prevention is for businesses of all sizes.