Sexual harassment is no laughing matter. Employees are entitled to work in an environemnt that is safe and comfortable. When a supervisor harasses employees he is responsible for advising, the employer of the supervisor is responsible for the supervisor's action.

A person qualifies as an employee's "supervisor" if the individual has the authority to recommend tangible employment decisions affecting the employee or if the individual has the authority to direct the employee's daily work activities.

A change within employee's status is considered a tangible employment action. This includes promotions, demotions, and undesirable reassignments, decisions causing a significant change in benefits, compensation decisions and work assignments. If an employee refuses to act on sexual demands by a supervisor and thus a demontion occurs.

Such an action can either be beneficial or detrimental.

The EEOC has recommended that all employers establish, distribute to all employees, and enforce a policy that prohibits harassment. The harassment procedures should outline preventative measures as well as disciplinary tactics taken if harassment occurs. The procedures should spell out how an employee can file a complaint. In most cases, the policy and procedures should be in writing. It is also recommended that employees sign a document that acknowledges receipt of the policies. The policy should state that the employer will not tolerate retaliation against anyone who complains of harassment or who participates in an investigation. The actions of a supervisor are not only legal on the supervisor, but the employer is responsible legally as well.

Small businesses (usually fewer than 15 employees) may be able to discharge their responsibility to prevent and correct harassment through less formal means. As long as the business conducts a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation of any complaints and undertakes swift and appropriate corrective action, it will have fulfilled its responsibility to "effectively prevent and correct harassment."

The EEOC has recommended practical guidelines regarding the duty of employers to prevent and correct harassment and the duty of employees to avoid harassment by using their employers' complaint procedures. Following these guidelines do not relieve any employer of responsibility for the harassment of an employee by a supervisor.

The following provides an overview of the guidelines for both employers and employees:

* Employers should encourage employees to report harassment to management before it becomes severe or pervasive. The employer should assure employees that it will protect the confidentiality of harassment complaints to the extent it is possible.

* If an employer determines that harassment occurred, it should take immediate measures to stop the harassment and ensure that it does not recur. Disciplinary measures should be proportional to the severity of the offense. The employer also should correct the effects of the harassment by, for example, restoring leave taken because of the harassment and expunging negative evaluations in the employee's personnel file that arose from the harassment.

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