Have you ever experienced sexual harassment in the workplace?

[milestogo]

34 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	Yes, and I am female
	24 (71%)
	No, and I am female
	2 (6%)
	Yes, and I am male
	8 (24%)
	No, and I am male
	0 (0%)
	OTHER
	0 (0%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
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[CrispyQ]

1. You might want to clarify.

In CO, at any rate, a sexual harassment complaint doesn't have to be by the person who the comment/action was directed. Anyone who witnesses the event can file a complaint. I know many, many young people who were shocked to discover this in an environment I once worked in.

on edit: They had what they thought was a nice comradery among their group, but someone outside the group took offense & complained.

[mopinko]

2. i've been out of the work place for a long time, but i used to be a union carpenter.

i was treated very well on my 1st job, but that didnt stop the boss's son from taking a piss off a scaffold a couple feet from where i was working below.
and then there was the sweet old laborer whose response when i rebuffed him was to hope that i fell off the ladder i was on and broke my neck.

but what ran me out was the boss who didnt want women in the biz, so he laid me off every friday just to rehire me on monday or tuesday. i was a single mom w a kid to feed.

several of my sisters and i started an org- chicago women in trades, which exists to this day. and is sadly as needed as ever.

i think the important part is if it cost you a job.

[Boomerproud]

4. Thank you for your important contribution to women.

That is how change is made,!

[mopinko]

17. d'awww

it was my pleasure, mostly.
took me places i never would have gone.

[milestogo]

18. I recently met a woman who works construction for a very reputable contractor

She experienced sexual harassment from one man that was both physical and verbal. It went on for a very long time. She reported it but it took years for anything to be done. Now that man is banned from working any jobs with women. She still has her job, although she had to take a year off for PTSD.

I give her a lot of credit for fighting through it. She loved the job and had no problems with the other men, even though it was kind of a rough environment for women.

The man should have been fired and his reputation destroyed.

[mopinko]

19. i worked for/with so many great guys.

i loved the work, and have used my skills in many ways all my life.
mostly point and write checks these days, but i did a gut rehab of a cute little house w a couple of my best friends. didnt swing a hammer, but did design and procurement. used a ton of recycled materials. came out so cute.
got a project going now, but having hella time finding help.

[2naSalit]

3. Other...

Might be easier to ask; Have you ever had a job where you weren't sexually harassed?

[KarenS]

6. yep,,,, n/t

[Walleye]

8. ☝️

[cbabe]

10. Truth.

[Solly Mack]

11. That's the truth.

[Ocelot II]

12. That would be more like it.

[lark]

14. For any older woman, that would probably be a big yes.

Until they installed workplace rules about sexual harassment, it was so common place and prevalent that woman warned new women on the job about who to watch out for. Sad, but so true. We dressed conservatively just to keep the male managers away from us and got practiced at evasion and deflection and saying no in an inoffensive way as possible.

Life in offices certainly changed for women with these laws. After these, I was only hasseled about my politics. So freaking glad to be out of that world.

Edit - corrected typo

[2naSalit]

15. It took quite a while for...

Last edited Thu Aug 5, 2021, 12:13 PM - Edit history (1)

Those laws to take hold in many places, the tactics may have changed a bit but the harassment continued all the while. Still going on in many places as we see with the latest news from New York.

[Mary in S. Carolina]

21. Bingo

Male Supremacy

[Beringia]

23. With the nasty combination of tyrannical bosses and territorial males

Many times.

[marble falls]

5. I remember Barb Cook once asking me at a new restaurant we were working (the Fireside)...

... "Who do I have to fuck to get a good station here?" and knowing it was only half a joke, because we'd both worked at Tangiers, and it was well known the managers went through the waitresses. And some of the waiters and male bartenders went through the dining room busboys.

It was prevalent, and it was expected and mostly unwelcome. People working Tangiers made big money for a restaurant. When the coke storms of the late 70's hit, it got much worse.

[sarisataka]

7. It was not directed towards me

But to a female Marine. A fellow NCO engaged in explicit quid-pro-quo harassment. Two other NCOs and myself shut him down.

After he left the female said she did not want to press charges. We had a short discussion and came to the conclusion we as leaders could not let this pass. The male was in a position where he would have further opportunities to harass women.

In the end he was convicted by court-martial, reduced rank, fined and discharged under other than honorable.

[WA-03 Democrat]

9. Thank you!

[sarisataka]

20. I have to say it wasn't easy

As we were all friends in a unit that was 98% male. It had been hammered into our heads since day one of boot camp that integrity meant doing when was right. Even though we were pretty buzzed, it happened at an off duty party, it took less than a minute for the three of us to agree we had to go to the CO.

[MineralMan]

13. Personally, no. However, I have observed it and spoken up.

I'm a man. While I know that some men have been sexually harassed, I never have. However, I have known many women who have experience such harassment in the workplace. I have never harassed anyone, and have spoken up to condemn it in the places where I have worked. However, I dropped out of W-2 employment in 1974, and never took another job working for someone else. Inequities were a big part of that decision.

One situation I remember very well involved a fellow employee who was constantly sexually harassed. She was a very attractive woman, and someone was always crudely coming on to her. She told me about it as we got to know each other. Later, we developed a romantic relationship. When that happened, one guy came up to me and said, "Forget about her. She's the "Ice Queen." He was one of the ones she had told me about who had harassed her. A while later, she and I got married. Nothing wrong with her. He was an asshole, though.

[Sherman A1]

16. I have observed it and when I could put and end to it in my work area.

As a Grocery Store Receiver before I retired some 5 years ago, I was in charge of the backroom and had a mix of male and female vendor reps and merchandisers (stockers) who would work in the area along with store employees of both sexes. I also dealt with many a truck driver (a profession still predominately male). Several incidents come to mind.

First: a female merchandiser for a large soft drink company was bending over a pallet of 12 packs sorting out what she needed. A driver from a snack company made a comment about her backside at which time I handed him his paperwork, looked over the top of my glasses and said, "she is a hard worker, I think of all the young ladies in my backroom as my daughters and it was time for him to leave now."

Second: a female employee was being asked by a merchandiser for a large beer company to pose for photos. He was told to concentrate on his work rather quickly.

Third: a merchandiser for a large soft drink company was asking a female employee what she looked like in a swimsuit. He was pulled aside and reminded rather quickly that his company has very deep pockets and if they were sued by this young lady that it would cost them a bundle and him his job.

Fourth: One of our company drivers took a liking to our female dairy manager and was pushing over the limit of her comfort level. I had the Assistant Dairy Manger (Male) bring him over to me one day when she wasn't around and since I had not observed the behavior told him that I had heard some driver was bothering our Dairy Manager and if he could get the word to the fellow that I wasn't going to allow it to continue I would appreciate it as I had heard that the fellow had a wife and family. Being out of a job certainly wasn't going to be a good thing for him if I had to pursue the matter. I did mention that I think of all the young ladies in the backroom as my daughters and wasn't going to see them bothered.

I am sure that there were a few more, but those come to mind off the top of my head.

[Deep State Witch]

22. "Phil the Flasher"

In one office that I worked in during the 90's, we had this older dude named Phil. He was a lecher. We called him "Phil the Flasher" because he wore the typical beige raincoat. Well, I was engaged and planning my wedding at the time. Phil was constantly needling me about getting married. (He was divorced, and I knew his ex. She was a lovely person.) He finally propositioned me one day. I turned around and said, "I'd kill and old man like you." Our boss just about had a heart attack at the thought of a sexual harassment claim (back then, very hard to prove, and a lot of paperwork). However, I put that creepy old dude in his place. He retired and opened up a used bookstore, which failed.

[chowder66]

24. My experiences were verbal and there were attempts at more

but I shut them all down. I wasn't shy about making my boundaries known. A couple of the exec's I worked for then went for the old male trope...are you a lesbian? That's their go-to when they want to fantasize about you but can't handle the rejection.

[ProfessorGAC]

25. Define Experienced

I'm male.
I've witnessed inappropriate behavior & took corrective steps, but the harrassment was not directed at me.
I chose "other" because i wasn't sure my experience counted in thr otuer categories.

[H2O Man]

26. Recommended.

Yes. It was uncomfortable, and made for an unpleasant work environment initially. However, to be clear, I think my lone experience pales in comparison to what women face too often. I'm not sure I can explain that, as some things can't be communicated in so many words.