Investigation and Analysis of Sexual Harassment in Corporate Workplace of China

doi:10.4236/sm.2012.23038

Paper Menu >>

Journal Menu >>

Sociology Mind

2012. Vol.2, No.3, 289-292

Published Online July 2012 in SciRes (http://www.SciRP.org/journal/sm) http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/sm.2012.23038

Investigation and Analysis of Sexual Harassment in Corporate

Workplace of China

Xiaobing Zhang1, Zewei Zhang2

1Economics and Manageme nt S c ho ol , H ua iyin Institute of Technology, Huai’an, China

2Business Administ r ation School, Guizhou Insti tute of Finance and Economics, Guiyang, China

Email: [email protected], 84975463@ qq.com

Received March 4th, 2012; revised April 5th, 2012; accepted May 12th, 2012

At present, sexual harassment in domestic workplace has a high probability of occurrence, which causes

more and more attention. In this paper, the form of sexual harassment in workplace, and how to solve the

sexual harassment were investigated and analyzed through questionnaires; and countermeasures and

management suggestions were put forward from three aspects of corporate, employees and family.

Keywords: Sexual Harassment; Workplace; Investigation; Suggestions; Countermeasures

Introduction

With the development of economy, gradually diversification

and complication of social life, sexual harassment issues come

into play. Sexual harassment has caused more and more atten-

tion and reflection. For a long time, people’s understanding of

sexual harassment is still quite vague. From a global perspec-

tive, many countries have legislation to make clear that sexual

harassment is a crime, and various forms of severe punishment

will be used to punish people for his harassment. In our country,

so far, widespread sexual harassment in the workplace has be-

come a social problem of affecting the lives, work and health of

women, family stability, and social stability. Its high probabil-

ity of occurrence and the severity of harm are far more than the

imagination of people, so it is necessary to solve this problem

as soon as possible. According to a questionnaire survey of 600

people in Shenzhen in 2009, 32 percent of respondents said

they had been subjected to various forms of sexual harassment,

in which female victims accounted for 43% of the total number

of visits, male victims accounted for 19% of the total number of

visits. Sexual harassment in work environment in China is be-

coming a social problem, and in some corporate, this problem

has even reached a more serious level.

Literature Review

Sexual harassment is an exotic phrase, and known as sexual

harassment in western countries. Sexual harassment is first put

forward by American Women Jurists Catherine. She pointed

out that sexual harassment is the behavior doing unwelcome,

sex-related words, demands or actions to the woman, through

the abuse of power in the workplace, schools, hospitals or other

public areas, by bullying, intimidation, control means .

American College and University Personnel Association di-

vides sexual harassment in the workplace into four cases: sex-

ual harassment of the exchange of threatening, sexual harass-

ment of making the work that people feel threatened, hostile,

infringed, indirect sexual harassment and outsiders sexual har-

assment of providing special treatment to specific employees

providing sexual services.

In China, people have paid attention to and studied the prob-

lem of sexual harassment only in recent years. Sexual harass-

ment is a hidden phenomenon. For a long time, very little atten-

tion was paid to some problems of subjecting to sexual abuse in

different degrees in public place or work place. In comparison

with international, there is lack of scale survey of the status of

sexual harassment in China, but according to some local or

small-scale survey, phenomenon of sexual harassment in China

is increasingly common and growingly serious.

According to China’s recently published several research

shows that the serious state of such a problem in our country

has been catching up with trends overseas. In recent years,

many media have exposed a number of cases of sexual harass-

ment cases, for example, a female teacher is sexually harassed

by her boss, and the first case of sexual harassment in Xi’an

went against because of insufficient evidence! These events

cau sed m u c h at t e n t i o n to s e x ual h a r a s s m e nt i s sues (S h e n , 2004).

Most of the current sexual harassment is sexual harassment

in the workplace, and the type of sexual harassment produced

much more serious consequences than sexual harassment in the

public place. The consequences caused to the victims is not

only sustained mental anguish, but also a direct result of the

deterioration of working conditions, some of the victims are

forced to resign in order to avoid sexual harassment, resulting

in some economic loss (Wang, 1998). It can also lead to com-

panies reduce productivity, pay compensation or fines. It will

hinder the process of social equality, hinder productivity and

social development.

In the European Community, sexual harassment of working

women has been a serious problem. The survey of its members,

such as Germany, France, the Netherlands and Denmark shows

that sexual harassment at work is not an isolated phenomenon

of single woman, but to the millions of women throughout the

EC, sexual harassment has become an unpleasant unwanted

part in their career (Wang, 1998).

Investigation and Analysis of Sexual Harassment

in Corporate Workplace

Research Objects

The female employees of Nanjing Huahao Investment Co.,

X. B. ZHANG, Z. W. ZHANG

Ltd. and Fidelity Life Insurance Co., Ltd. are chosen as re-

search objects, because Nanjing gathering companies is the

“high stress zone”, the powerful economic strength, a wealth of

information resources and the international status make people

can not help feeling the pressure. Many women drowned in the

environment, in order to live or achieve their ideal, often pay

more effort than men. However, women are low capacity,

strong hesitant, and more prone to psychological problems.

Many enterprises in Nanjing, many different people come here

to develop; each has different character and means of doing

things, so the findings would be more diverse.

The standard sample was selected as the research objects

with the method of random sampling, in order to narrow the

scope of the study, to reduce the difficulty of the work, I mainly

selected female employees of certain enterprises in Nanjing as

samples, the survey conditions are: 1) the ages from 21 to 50

years old, that is sexual harassment-prone age; 2) have work

experience of more than one year.

Research M e t h od s

This study combined literature review, surveys. 123 ques-

tionnaires were sent out from March 28, 2011 to April 15, 2011,

100 available questionnaires were retrieved, of which 42 were

sent out in writing by the author, the other 81 were sent out by

e-mail.

Research Process

In this study the questionnaire of previous international re-

search literature was used, and modified the initial scale by

interview, and then the modified scale was used to test the re-

spondents and reliability and validity of the test questionnaire

was analyzed, finally compiled into a formal questionnaire. The

questionnaire consists of two parts: background measurement

and measurement of corporate sexual harassment. Background

measurement part consists of gender, age, education, marital

status, the nature of the enterprises, monthly income, and the

nature of work and positions the eight items. The measurement

part of corporate sexual harassment consists of seven questions,

respectively put a question to the object of sexual harassment,

the subject of sexual harassment, measures the object of sexual

harassment may take to, the impact of sexual harassment on the

psychology of the object, methods should be given when

somebody suffered sexual harassment in the enterprise and how

to better promote prevention of sexual harassment and other

aspects of the question.

Research Re sults

The specific circumstance of the sample is shown in Table 1.

The results are that sexual harassment more prone to occur in

the place lack of system tradition and system protection.

Survey showed that verbal sexual harassment in the work

environment is the principal form of sexual harassment. Ac-

cording to Table 2 shows, women having experienced verbal or

attitude harassment in the corporate workplace accounted for

54% in this survey, the proportion is far higher than investiga-

tors initially expected.

According to Table 3 shows, survey also showed that require

the competent unit process and report to the police are the main

methods to deal with sexual harassment.

Table 1.

The situation of the formal investigation sample (100).

Variable Option No. of perso nPercentage

Male 0 0%

Gender Female 100 100%

21 - 30 40 40%

31 - 41 28 28%

41 - 50 27 27%

Age

Above 50 5 5%

Under or eq u al to

secondary school 2 2%

Senior high school 12 12%

Junior college 36 36%

Educational

level

Regular college 50 50%

Single 72 72%

Marital

status Married 28 28%

Below 1000 y uan 9 9%

1000 - 3000 yuan 54 54%

3000 - 5000 yuan 25 25%

Monthly

income

Above 500 0 yuan 12 12%

State-owne d company 1 1 11%

Private enterprise 52 52%

Foreign-capital enterprise 18 18%

Sino-foreign joint ventures 7 7%

Work unit

Institutions 12 12%

Production 4 4%

Sales 54 54%

Executive 23 23%

Management 19 19%

The nature

of the work

Project (including research

and exploitation) 0 0%

General manager 21 21%

Line manager 46 46%

Middle manager 16 16%

Senior manager 0 0%

Position

Other 17 17%

Countermeasures and Management Suggestions

on Preventing and Solving Sexual Harassment

in the Workplace

Countermeasures and Management Suggestions on

Enterprise Preventing and Solving Sexual

Harassment in the Workplace

The Enterprise Should List the Related Content on

Prevention of Sexual Harassment in the Internal Rules

and Regulations

Enterprise, moreover, is the protector of workers’ legitimate

rights and interests. Business protecting the legal rights of

workers, the first performance is to respect and understanding

290

X. B. ZHANG, Z. W. ZHANG

Table 2.

Encountered which form of sexual harassment.

Option No. of person percentage

Verbal or attitu d e 54 54%

Physical behavior 20 20%

Exchange condition 8 8%

None 18 18%

Table 3.

How to deal with sexual harassment.

Countermeasures No. of person Percentage

Hit back harasser on the spot 4 4%

Curse harasse r on the spot 2 2%

Complain to family membe rs or friends18 18%

Require the competent unit process 27 27%

Report to the police 25 25%

Turn to private organization for h elp 13 13%

Tolerance 1 1%

Regard as noting 2 2%

Other 8 8%

the workers, followed is to achieve the specific labor rights of

workers. So companies in labor relations, bear an important

responsibility to protect basic human rights of workers. Sexual

harassment in enterprise workplace is against the sex right of

the workers, will cause the victims’ inner resentment and fear,

resulting in the exclusion of sexual object, the rights of victims

have been infringed seriously. Therefore, enterprises should

establish appropriate rules and regulations to protect workers’

basic rights, and create a harmonious, good working environ-

ment.

First, establish the related content of prevention sexual har-

assment in labor contracts. Employers are obligated to provide

a fair, safe, no harm good working environment and working

condition for workers. Second, establish disciplinary rules pro-

hibiting sexual harassment, make clear the appropriate penalties

of sexual harassment, and increase the punishment for sexual

harassment. Third, determine there are employees to investigate

and solve sexual harassment complaints in the specialized

agencies. Workers suffering sexual harassment, can complain

to the special department, and can require the perpetrator to

apologize, in serious cases may require compensation. Disci-

plined services departments should identify the truth of the

matter, and properly solve disputes between employees. On

sexual harassment disputes between employees can not be

solved on internal, victims should be informed to apply to de-

partments concerned, and should support the victims to protect

their legitimate rights and interests.

Enterprises Should Strengthen the Transparency of the

Workplace

Whether sexual harassment in the workplace, or sexual har-

assment in public places, the perpetrator generally does not

want people to know, such behavior has a certain degree of

secrecy. Therefore, to reduce sexual harassment in the work-

place, the transparency of the work environment should be

strengthened. Business do not set too privacy space in the office

environment, try to take collective office or cubicle-like office

design, if they really need a separate office environment, can

take a transparent glass design, not to create the objective con-

ditions for sexual harassment. Try to avoid scheduling a man

and a woman in a separate office. When employees who have

been harassed required to exchange office or required addi-

tional staff in a separate place, the enterprise should give con-

siderable attention, do not say “no evidence” or “later” to dodge.

Qualified enterprises, under the premise of non-infringement

the privacy of workers, can also install monitoring equipment in

the workplace, which will play a role to avoid sexual harass-

ment.

Sexual harassment prevention education should be carried

out to staff. Companies should regularly or irregularly educate

and train staff by a variety of ways to prevent sexual harass-

ment, such as issuing manuals or posters, holding seminars, and

incorporating film, video and other information.

Establish the sexual harassment prevention agencies. The

agency’s duties include deal with staff grievances responsibility

and fairly; assess the effectiveness of sexual harassment policy

and implementation process; supervise employees behavior in

the workplace; pay close attention to the country legislation on

sexual harassment, adore new measures or recommendations

other organizations used in the prevention and treatment of

sexual harassment and collect sexual harassment cases within

and outside of organizations; improve continuously the preven-

tion mechanism of sexual harassment within the organization.

The Enterprise Should Establish the Equal Organizational

Culture

As long as there is inequality in society, anyone can become

the object of sexual harassment from the subject of sexual har-

assment, or vice versa. Therefore, to eradicate sexual harass-

ment, the key lies in creating an organizational culture with

peace and equality, to promote respect and the values of equal-

ity in the organization, in order to create a gender equality and

mutual respect working environment.

Countermeasures and Management Suggestions on

Employees Preventing and Solving Sexual

Harassment in the Workplace

For the workplace sexual harassment frequently occurs, en-

terprise employees should enhance self-protection, avoid be-

coming victims of sexual harassment. Firstly, we should pay

attention to our dress and behavior in the workplace. Dress in

the workplace should meet the needs of work and avoid wear-

ing too revealing clothes. Behavior in the workplace should be

generous, gestures should be consistent with our status, do not

play some excessive jokes with others, to avoid too frivolous

and impulsive behavior. Secondly, avoid to work overtime

alone with the opposite sex boss or people with sexual harass-

ment tendencies. Thirdly, sexual harassment occurring in his

body should be severely prevented. The harassment of people is

generally tentative for the first time, if the victims fear or com-

promise sexual harassment based on come consideration, it

would encourage the arrogance of the perpetrators of sexual

harassment, make themselves more and more disadvantageous

position, the result will be gradually increased harassment, is

X. B. ZHANG, Z. W. ZHANG

292

illegal connivance, is not conducive to the prevention of sexual

harassment and attack. The victims should defend their legiti-

mate rights and interests consciously and courageously.

Major sexual harassment in the workplace is superiors sexu-

ally harass subordinates. Within the enterprise, the work and

quality of staff is mainly based on the evaluation of the boss, so

boss often sexually harass subordinates by it, and subordinates

often keep tolerant for such acts based on promotion or keeping

their jobs, but this will make perpetrator more reckless viola-

tions. To prevent sexual harassment fundamentally, the victims

must have the courage to fight against sexual harassment, to

protect their legitimate rights and interests. On the other hand,

compared with the harasser, the victims of sexual harassment

are often in a weak position, part of the victims will only yield

and obey in order to prevent future retaliation from harasser in

the sexual harassment. This is connivance and accommodation

to illegal behavior, which will make the perpetrator of sexual

harassment more furious, so when facing the sexual harassment,

the victims should eliminate the concerns, have the courage to

fight against the perpetrator, only in this way can they safe-

guard their legitimate rights and interests. Secondly, the victims

should actively collect evidence to prove sexual harassment

occurred. Most cases of sexual harassment occurred in the

much hidden places, usually only the perpetrator and the vic-

tims are on the spot, and thus lack of direct witnesses, which

make it essential that the victim must take the initiative to col-

lect and extract relevant evidence in order to safeguard their

legitimate rights and interests. The victims should use appro-

priate methods to obtain evidence, the documentary evidence

and physical evidence should be preserved as original as possi-

ble, the cell phone information and e-mail can also be retained

by technical means. For speech or action to sexual harassment,

in addition to resist openly and timely to access to the necessary

outside witnesses, the victims can also record the harasser's

behavior by a variety of secret fidelity audio and video equip-

ment. According to judicial interpretation issued by the Su-

preme Court, audio-visual information through photographing

and videotaping stealthily, only do not infringe the legal rights

of others or violate the law prohibitions, can be used as evi-

dence, which provide an important legal protection for the vic-

tims’ secret evidence. Thirdly, by a variety of ways to protect

their legitimate interests make the perpetrator of sexual harass-

ment deserve sanctions. The victims can report sexual harass-

ment to internal disciplinary departments, ask the appropriate

agencies of sexual harassment criticize and educate the perpe-

trator, to avoid the expansion of disputes, and strive to solve the

problem within the enterprise. Victims can Complain to the

labor administrative department, ask the labor administrative

department investigate the sexual harassment occurred within

the unit, not only make the perpetrator punished, but also make

employers bear the responsibility since the enterprise is inade-

quate to protect workers. This can reduce sexual harassment in

the workplace radically and improve working conditions, solve

the problem properly. For the more serious sexual harassment,

the victims can go directly to the people’s court to require the

perpetrator to bear the corresponding civil liability, the in-

fringer punished by law. In the lawsuit process, trade union

organization should support actions to help collect evidence, to

effectively protect the legitimate interests of employees.

Countermeasures and Management Suggestions on

Employees’ Families Preventing and Solving Sexual

Harassment in the Workplace

Help from family members plays an important role in the

prevention and resolution of sexual harassment in the work-

place. Family members should pay attention to employees’

dress in the usual, remind her dress decent in the workplace at

the appropriate time, not too exposed, or does not match with

the atmosphere of the workplace.

Conclusion

Through survey, the following conclusion is drawn. Sexual

harassment in corporate workplace has become increasingly

prominent. Verbal sexual harassment is becoming a common

way of harassment in the workplace; most women experiencing

sexual harassment in the workplace chose to require the com-

pany competent department or the police to solve.

Future research can expand the scope of sample selection

more widely, so that research findings are more comparable and

workable.

Acknowledgements

This paper is financially supported by The “QingLan Pro-

ject” of Jiangsu Department of Education of P. R. China.

REFERENCES

Croney, S. T., & Kleiner, B. H. (1995). Understanding and effectively

managing sexual harassment. Equal Opportunities International, 21,

46-53. doi:10.1108/eb010649

Gary, L. W., & Shirley, H. T. (1998). A theoretical integration of sex-

ual harassment models. Equal Opportunities International, 24, 21-

29.

Maggie, T., & Kleiner, B. H. (1999) How to investigate sexual harass-

ment in the workplace. Equal Opportunities Intern ational, 25, 1-7.

Shen, Y. F. (2004). Generalization of the concept of sexual harassment,

narrowing and response measures. Collection of Women’s Studies, 34,

11-27.

Wang, X. J. (1998). The status quo and research of sexual harassment.

Collection of Women’s Studies, 44, 39-44.