Sexual Harassment In Australia

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Sexual Harassment is an ongoing and frequent occurrence in workplaces. As aforementioned, 22% of Australian working women have experienced sexual harassment. Moreover, another U.S based survey found that 20% of working people experienced harassment in 4 years (McDonald, 2012). These findings indicate that sexual harassment is continuous and progressive issue to a considerable extent. Recent studies has brought up that more masculine gender context results in increases of sexual harassment incidents. For exmple, according to an analysis of prevalance surveies from Australian Human Rights Comission sexual harassment, working women in male-dominated and hierarchical workplaces more than in female-dominated or balanced workplaces (Charlesworth, Mcdonald, & Cerise, 2011). …show more content…

Numerous researches have demonstrated that sexual harassment has a substantial impact on employees’ work lives in organisational contexts. Impacts include job satisfaction, job stress, and commitment of work as well as employees’ psychological and physical well-being (Langhout, Bergman, Cortina, Fitzgerald, Drasgow, & Williams, 2005). Furthermore, sexual harassment has been found that increase turnover, absenteesim and less productivity (Malamut & Offermann, 2001). In a similar vein, numerous researches have documneted negative outcomes of sexual harassmnet on organisations which include psychological problem, job-related consequences and impaired physical health (Lim & Cortina, 2005). Firstly, psychological and physical health outcomes range from anxiety, anger, irritation, depression, fear, humiliation and post-traumatic stress disorder. Poor psychological outcomes have been associated with harassment because it is perpetrated in male-dominated workplace and may take place over a long period of time. Even hearing or observing sexual harassment of co-workers can foster ‘bystander’ stress. (McDonald,

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