SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT WORK PLACE

-JAYA GUPTA
Sexual harassment at work place in general parlance would mean as unwanted sexual relations imposed by superiors on sub-ordinates at work. It is an abuse of power and position. There is a growing concern for the protection and safety of women especially when women are employed or working. At workplace it is much more difficult to complain for such acts due to the hostile environment and thus it leads to suffering, mental torture thereby leading to the jeopardy of the life, safety and dignity of women. Since workplaces are mostly characterized by hierarchy of positions it becomes very difficult for a person at a lower hierarchy to complain. This becomes much more a stigma when the victim is a woman as she attributes importance not only to her dignity but to her status in society and reputation. All these instances of harassment are mostly regarded as a threat to her physical or mental status and thus when all these reasons are coupled together it leads to nonreporting of the complaint by the victim. On a bare perusal of the last thousand years one may find cases of such nature where the employer used to harass women by exploiting his position and threating the victims employment by taking advantage of his superior position. In such circumstances it becomes very difficult for a woman to fearlessly voice against the employer and condemn his acts. Only a few women would dare to complain affecting her reputation, status, dignity and future prospects of marriage there was a slight possibility that there complaints would be heard. All the faults were found on women and the employer used to go scot-free. From the ancient period like in vedas woman are considered equal to men. They were given the same position as that to men. Thus they should be given equal opportunity to work and in equal circumstances. In the modern times, more and more women are exploring opportunities for selffulfilment outside their households. If the working environment is hostile to a woman it will affect her not only physically and/or mentally but also it will affect her efficiency, output and thus leading to reduction in profit of firm. Thus it will be beneficial not only for the employees but for the employer as well to have a safe and free working environment. In recent times there were several instances where the issue of sexual harassment at work place was brought to the forefront and thus the need to have a bill for the same was recognized. Sexual harassment is a wider term and includes all those acts or behaviour which are unwelcome to a woman whether verbal or non-verbal or by conduct. It is an employers duty or obligation to create a harassment free workplace so that such instances can be prevented at the very outset. Hence the

employer should take such reasonable steps that would prevent such harassment before it occurs and to have an efficient mechanism to remedy harassment after it has taken place. An apparent example of sexual harassment is when a beneficial condition of employment is promised upon an employee's submission to sexual advances. In other words, that claim is also raised when an employee rejects a sexual advance, and claims a connection between that rejection and a subsequent adverse job action. That action might be a denial of a raise or promotion, a termination, or a "constructive discharge" where an employee claims that the retaliation made his or her job conditions intolerable. This form of harassment is referred to as quid pro quo. An attempt to characterize sexual harassment lead to classification in broadly five common types: Sexual harassment is typically directed at women, but men can also be victims. Here is a brief description of the five common types: 1. Threatening A person is threatened or offered rewards promotions, raises, etc. in return for sexual favours. A direct or implied threat often accompanies such a proposition, making it clear that the victims career will be jeopardized if he or she doesnt comply with the request. 2. Physical harassment This occurs when a person is unwillingly touched. Some examples of physical harassment include, but are not limited to: touching a persons clothing, hair or body; hugging, kissing, patting or stroking; massaging a persons neck or shoulders; or standing close to or brushing up against a person. 3. Verbal harassment This comes from anyone within the firm and or other workplace or a person who does business with the firm or company. Some examples are: referring to an adult as a babe, honey, girl or stud; whistling at someone; turning work discussion to sexual topics; asking personal questions of a sexual nature; making sexual comments about a persons clothing, anatomy or looks; or asking someone repeatedly for dates and refusing to take no for an answer. 4. Non-verbal harassment (body language) Examples of non-verbal harassment include: suggestive looks; prolonged staring; giving unwanted personal gifts; winking and making sexual gestures with the hands or body movements. 5. Environmental harassment Sexually suggestive pictures or objects displayed in the workplace may offend people. These items depict women or men as sex objects.1

http://www.lawsociety.com

HISTORY The role of women in ancient times was not confined to cooking, cleaning, bearing children, washing clothes but some of them have also been rulers, merchants, shopkeepers etc. They have been slaves and concubine. In India they have been worked in fields, as artisans and so on. There were other occupations like Priestess, prostitute, business partner, cook, slave, house slave, nurse, nanny, etc.

An early example of sexual harassment can be traced in the U.S. where the African American women who were treated as slaves faced sexual assault from their masters/owners. At that time there was no legal remedy available to them. It was nothing illegal about these types of acts and behaviour.
In the ancient times the kings used to have courtesans who used to provide sexual pleasures only to the king and the nobility. They were under the patronage of king. In cases like this, a courtesan was solely at the mercy of her benefactor or benefactors financially, making her vulnerable. They were not allowed to leave their profession, were repressed and socially ostracized. In indian context these women are often referred as Amrapali. Courtesans and prostitutes were part of ancient Indian society also. As in ancient Greece, courtesans were often literate, and skilled in music and dancing besides the usual sexual services. A refusal would result in heavy punishment from the king. Such practices continued over a long period of time leading to sexual harassment of women and no law to prohibit them. In contrary they were recognized by the society of that time and thus was an acceptable practice. In India the queens when married used to bring with them slaves who not only assisted her but also used to satisfy the sexual desires of the king and nobility. Those slaves were subjected to harassment from king. This was legally recognized at that time and was not forbidden. The children of those slaves were also forced into this profession. During the Muslim period there were Harems. Many women were kept here who were not only Moslem(Muslim) but Hindus also. There were not allowed to go outside and would only come outside once they die. It was a form of imprisonment. There were harassed sexually by the king or his people. Local kings like the Rajput kings used to sell their daughters here for pretty benefits. The concept of slaves has been prevailing from a long time. The slaves were used both for domestic purposes and for working in the fields. They were heightened risk of sexual exploitation in both the cases and were used to gratify sexual desires of the owners and thus were an investment for the owners. The children of the slaves were also entrusted with the same work hence were an asset to the owner. The trade of human slaves was legally recognized as in Islam, such women often referred to as concubines. Since they were very poor they could not protest against the sexual harassment and were denied of any legal right by the society. It was an acceptable practice prevailed in the society.

Another form prevailed was of Devadasis i.e. female in the service of god. They are usually unmarried and had sexual relations with the priest and with the king and members of royal entourage. Temple prostitution is usually resorted when the poor family of a girl child cannot afford the expenses of marriage or by a widow who has been driven from her house or has left it. They were like female servants of the king in the palace.

Manu law says that Balye pitorvashay tishteth panee grhasay yownay.
putranam bhartre pretay na bjait stri swatantr tam.2

This means that girls are supposed to be in the custody of their father when they are children, women must be under the custody of their husband when married and under the custody of her son as widows. In no circumstances is she allowed to assert herself independently. Thus according to manu law women were not allowed to work but practically she did work as a labourer, artisan etc. At these workplaces when she was sexually harassed by her employer she could not protest against it as the society indirectly supported it and there was no law to forbid this practice rather those laws encouraged such practices. Even when the women worked as prostitutes they were exploited to the highest degree by all. They were socially outcast and their profession was considered immoral. Prostitutes often faced discrimination and their rights were never recognized legally. This section of the society was vulnerable and was mostly sexually exploited. Their children often had to pursue the same profession and thus subject to the same harassment. Their rights are not recognized by the society till now and thus are an excluded part of the social order. These women could not report their cases anywhere as prostitution as a profession is considered illegal till now. If the conditions of widows are glanced through, the widows like the other were considered as non-entities. They were harassed and exploited. When they were forced to leave their homes or when they had no other option they used to turn into prostitutes. Mostly the young widows were the worst sufferers. The priest or the strongmen used to harass them in their quest for sexual titillation. Widows were considered as polluted. They were considered as a redundant part of the society and were misused. When these widows used to go for work somewhere i.e. to do menial jobs they faced sexual exploitation from the men. Such instances could not be reported anywhere and thus such harassment used to go unheard.

5/151of Manu law

In Manu it is said that Vidwayam niyusa tugratho vagayato nishi Ekam utpadaye ta putra na diwtayi kanth chan.3 It means that he who is appointed to cohabit with a widow shall approach her at night, be anointed with clarified butter and silently beget one son, but by no means a second one. Thus if the law recognizes such acts as valid then by no other means such acts could be condemned leading to encouragement to such practices. In Christianity also women are held at prejudice and are associated with lust. In ancient times they used to work as servants, nurse, slaves etc. but they were treated as weak in mind and character than man and hence no remedy was available to woman when suffered from sexual harassment from the employer. RECOGNITION: Sexual harassment for the first time came to the limelight three decades ago. For the first time, a U.S. court in 1977 ruled in favour of a woman who was fired for refusing her boss sexual advances. In this case of Barnes v. Costle4 first time a court recognized sexual harassment as legitimate grounds for a legal complaint. Initially, the court was reluctant to decide on such a relationship ruling them as outside the courts purview. But the judges decided to recognize Sexual Harassment at Work Place this time and hence this case opened the door to a wave of litigation. After this in 1980 the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) formally defined sexual harassment and issued guidelines. It laid down that if unwelcome sexual advances or lewd comments or behaviour created an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment, it was sexual harassment. After this there were many cases but a precedent was set in the case of Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc5 in 1993. It said that plaintiff may bring sexual harassment claim without necessarily showing psychological harm. The factors it stated when analyzing whether sexual harassment occurred are:
3 4

9/60 of Manu law 561 F.2d 983, DC Circuit, 1977 5 510 U.S. 17 (1993)

o Frequency of conduct o Its Severity o Whether the conduct is physically threatening or humiliating o Or is a mere offensive utterance o And whether the conduct unreasonably interferes with employees work performance o No Single Factor is Required but Totality of the Circumstances Test Also, in case of Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc6 in 1998 the U.S. Supreme Court upholds complaint based on same sex harassment. Thus, it can be perused that the U.S. courts have gone a long way in dealing with sexual harassment cases. India India is a land of diversity. It has been a part of various religion, race, caste etc. All these issues when summed up make things complicated. In this context if one sees the case of Bhanwari Devi it can be easily found out that a victim of sexual harassment has to not only face the torment at workplace but apart from that if such acts are condemned by the victim she is faced with severe consequences. Such consequences turn for the worst when it gets coloured by factors like caste dominance, male chauvinism, vote bank politics, inefficient administration etc. These factors are predominant especially in the Indian context. On a perusal of the recent scenario, one may find that though the term workplace now has a broader and different interpretation but the sexual harassment of women at such places continues till today. This practice is still in prevalence. In places like widow ashram, young widows are often exploited. In big firms and multinationals also there were instances when complaints regarding such kinds were made. A recent example could be of Tahelka (Indian news organisation) whose editor-in-chief was accused of sexual harassment by a women employee. The enquiry is still going on in the case. Such instances have opened up the debate for prevention of Sexual Harassment at work place and the need for effective recourse in such cases.

83 F.3d 118

In case of Bhanwari Devi who was a grassroots worker took up the job of a saathin. She was employed as part of the Womens Development Project (WDP) run by the Government of Rajasthan. As part of her job, in 1987, she took up a major issue of the attempted rape of a woman from a neighbouring village. All of these activities had the full support of the members of her village. However, in 1992, Bhanwari found herself isolated, when she reported the issue of child marriage as a part of the State Government of Rajasthans antichild-marriage campaign. Some influential conservative Gurjar families in the village were determined to perform child marriages. When she attempted to stop the same the annoyed villagers refused her water from the well, refused to sell her milk and started threatening her regularly. After this, she was brutally gang raped in 1992 by the members of the Gurjar community, which was a upper caste community, whereas Bhanwari belonged to a lower caste. It was only due to her long fierce battle that resulted in the Vishaka Guidelines in 1997. On a bare look at this case one may find that there was a strong need to protect women from sexual abuse and harassment at work places. Such instances like Bhanwari Devi case are not uncommon to the Indian society. Most of these heinous crimes committed at work place usually go unnoticed and unreported. Nowadays one may find that newspapers are filled with news of sexual assault and sexual abuse to women at workplaces. These instances are a reflection that how the employees of organized or unorganized sector have tried to take undue advantage of situations and have exploited the weaker sex. From the ancient time in India the women were not allowed to work and to live independently. This could be found even in the manu law. Manu law says that: Balye pitorvashay tishteth panee grhasay yownay. putranam bhartre pretay na bjait stri swatantr tam7

It means that girls are supposed to be in the custody of their father when they are children, women must be under the custody of their husband when married and under the custody of her son as widows. In no circumstances is she allowed to assert herself independently.

It also says that: Balya va ywatya va vridya vaapi yoshita, na swatantryen kartwayam kinchit karyam greshvapi8
7

5/151of Manu law

It means that a female child, young woman or old woman is not supposed to work independently even at her place of residence. From this it can be easily inferred that the women were not allowed to work outside. They were treated as chattels. It is only after a considerable period of time that the women have broken the shackles and have started to earn independently. Such a change was a result of continuous efforts by women to break the traditional mind set of society. But such a mind-set is still prevalent in the Indian society and thus resulting in the harassment of women at work places. They are looked down when they go out to work and to bring a change in society. They face discrimination not only from the employer but from her colleagues to the members of society at large. An indifferent attitude is shown to the sufferings, harassment and abuse of women. The status of women is an indicator of development in society. Gender equality is still a distant dream in India. There are so many barriers to employment that sometimes it becomes quite unthinkable to have a conducive work environment for women. Another dimension is added to this when factors like caste, class etc. also play their roles. This can be further explained from the fact that since the people from upper caste has a superiority complex and thus in no way they will accept the same or give the same treatment to the people of lower caste. They will consider this against their prestige or honour. Thus it becomes much more difficult to prevent instances of sexual harassment at work places due to so many underlying factors. There are many provisions in the Indian Constitution which emphasis on Gender Equality and Right to Live with Dignity. Gender Equality becomes much more relevant when it has been specifically inserted in our constitution as a fundamental right.

Provisions of Indian Constitution:

Each such incident results in violation of the fundamental rights of 'Gender Equality' and the 'Right of Life and Liberty'. It is clear violation of the rights under Articles 14, 15 and 21 of Constitution. Article 14 of the Indian Constitution states that:

5/150 of Manu law

14. Equality before law.The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India. Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.9 Thus it is the duty of the state to ensure that no sex discrimination takes place and women should be treated equal to men. There are more relevant articles on the same, for example, Article 15, 19(1)(g) and Article 21.

Article 15 of the constitution states that: Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.(1) The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. (2) xxx xxxx (3) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision for women and children." One of the logical consequences of such an incident is also the violation of the victim's fundamental right under Article 19(1)(g) 'to practice any profession or to carry out any occupation, trade or business'. This article is attracted since it is the duty of the state to provide a safe environment, free from sexual harassment. It also violates Article 21 i.e. Protection of life and personal liberty which is also a fundamental right.

Other provisions of the constitution which are relevant are: Article 4210: "Provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief - The State shall make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief." Article 51A11:
9

10

Article 14 of Indian Constitution Article 42 of Indian Constitution

"Fundamental duties. - It shall be the duty of every citizen of India, (a) to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, ... xxxx xxxx (e) to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women; xxx xxxx xxxx"
Some of the other law which directly or indirectly provide protection to women against harassment at the work place are as follows: 1. The Factories Act, 1948 2. The Prevention of Immoral Traffic Act, 1956 3. The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 4. The Bidi & Cigar Workers (Condition of Employment) Act, 1966 5. The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 6. The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986 7. The Mines & Minerals Act, 1987 There are also various provisions in the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 {Section 47(2), 51(2), 53} and in the Evidence Act of 1872 (Section 151,152) which also have bearing on the protection of women against harassment. The Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 The Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 provided some provisions in favour of women because harassment of women increasing at work places in day by day. Section 47(2) protects the female from the entry of Police Officers in their apartment without giving any prior notice. Section 51(2) and Section 51are related to search of arrested person. Section 51(2) provides that whenever it is necessary to cause a female to be searched the search shall be made by another female with strict regard to decency. Section 53 provides examination of accused by medical practitioner at the request of Police
11

Article 51A of Indian Constitution

Officer, whenever a female is to be examined, it should be done under the supervision of a female registered medical practitioner. 12

INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS AND NORMS: There are various international conventions and norms having relevance in this field. The Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discriminations Against Women (CEDAW) of 1979, Vienna Convention of 1993 and Beijing Declaration of 1995 are related regarding sexual harassment of women at work place. The UN General Assembly adopted a Convention on the Political Rights of women in 1952, and the work of the United Nations (Commencing with the establishment of a commission on the status of women in 1946) has covered a vast area of issues of equality and development of women. CEDAW, 1979 The CEDAW had specifically dealt with regarding to sexual harassment at work place. In Article 22 it had stated that equality in employment on be seriously impaired when women are subjected to gender specific violence, such as sexual harassment in the workplace. This convention has also defined the term sexual harassment elaborately and has also recommended to the State Members to evolve effective complaints, procedure and remedies, including compensations. Since India is a signatory to CEDAW and it has ratified it on 1993 therefore, this convention has been referred by the Supreme Court of India in Vishaka Case and in other cases. Vienna Declaration The Vienna Declaration stated that: The full and equal participation of women in the political, civil, economic, social and cultural life, at the national, regional and international levels and the eradication of all forms of discrimination on grounds of sex are priority objectives of the international community. Gender based violence and all forms of sexual harassment and exploitation, including those resulting from cultural prejudice and international trafficking are incompatible with the
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http://theweek.com/article/index/101896/sexual-harassment-a-fine-line

dignity and worth of the human person, and must be eliminated. This can be achieved by legal measures and through national action and international cooperation in such fields as economics and social development, education, safe maternity and health care, and social support. The world conference urges government, institutions, intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations to intensify their efforts for the protection and promotion of human rights of women.13 The Beijing Declaration, Fourth World Conference On Women, 1995: The Beijing Declarations14 said that Womens rights as human rights have come to be formally acknowledged and adopted at the intergovernmental level. This declaration prevents and eliminates all forms of violence against women and girls, and promotes and protects all human rights of women and girls such as Equal rights, opportunities and access to resources equal sharing of responsibilities for the family by men and women. The increasing ratification of the covenants on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women following Vienna and Beijing Conference has created the illusion that the state parties have indeed recognized that gender based violations constitute human rights violations and need serious intervention on their part to address it, Gender based human rights abuse would refer to denial or violation of rights on the ground of being female. 15 POSITION IN INDIA: These declarations have been widely quoted by Supreme Court and other courts in various cases. In the Vishaka case16 Chief Justice J.S. Verma said that to formulate effective measures to check the evil of sexual harassment of working women at all work places, the contents of International Conventions and norms are significant for the purpose of interpretation of the guarantee of gender equality, right to work with human dignity in

13 14

Para 18: Vienna Declaration and Programme, 1993 . Slogan 4 15 http://www.academia.edu/567733/Prevention_of_Sexual_Harassment_at_Workplace

16

1997 (6) SCC 241

Articles 14, 15 19(1)(g) and 21 of the Constitution and the safeguards against sexual harassment implicit therein. Any International Convention not inconsistent with the fundamental rights and in harmony with its spirit must be read into these provisions to enlarge the meaning and content thereof, to promote the object of the constitutional guarantee. He also said in his judgement that Gender equality includes protection from sexual harassment and right to work with dignity, which is a universally recognised basic human right. The common minimum requirement of this right has received global acceptance. The International Conventions and norms are, therefore, of great significance in the formulation of the guidelines to achieve this purpose. DEVELOPMENT: If one compares the situation of India from countries like U.S.A., it is evident that India lags far behind. USA had recognized the need for the prevention of sexual harassment at workplace long back ago in 1977. There were various rulings from the courts formulating the guidelines and strong actions against the same. Whereas the situation in India is quite for the worse, it had for the first time legally recognized, acknowledged and explicitly defined sexual harassment in 1997. The Supreme Court formulated the guidelines in its landmark case of Vishaka & Ors v. State Of Rajasthan & Or17s on 13 August, 1997. These guidelines filled the vacuum as there was no legislation on same in India. India has to trace a long path in preventing Sexual harassment at work place. In recent times, the Supreme Court has given two landmark judgments - Vishakha v. State of Rajasthan, 1997, and Apparel Export Promotion Council vs A K Chopra, 199918-- in which it laid down certain guidelines and measures to ensure the prevention of such incidents. After the Bhanwari Devi case, Vishakha and other women groups filed Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court to enforce the fundamental rights of working women under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India. The petition was filed against the State of Rajasthan and the Union of India, resulted in what are popularly known as the Vishaka Guidelines. The judgment of August 1997 provided the basic definitions

17 18

1997 (6) SCC 241 AIR 1999 SC 625

of sexual harassment at the workplace and provided guidelines to deal with it. It is seen as a significant legal victory for women's groups in India. A cursory survey of Indian Criminal Law would prove that there are various provisions in the Indian Penal Code of 1860 which can be made use of to protect the women from sexual harassment at work place, but none of these directly and explicitly deal with this problem. As a result of which the Supreme Court of India has to deal with situation separately and declared that there is a absence of enacted law on the subject. It was also recognised by the court that protection of women from women harassment at work place is a basic human right of gender equality. Thus an Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, the court defined the term Sexual Harassment and laid down the guidelines and norms to prevent sexual harassment at work place. However, before 1997, women experiencing sexual harassment at workplace had to lodge a complaint under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code that deals with the criminal assault of women to outrage womens modesty, and Section 509 that punishes an individual or individuals for using a word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman. These sections left the interpretation of outraging womens modesty to the discretion of the police officer. The entire scenario changed in 1997 with the introduction of the Vishaka guidelines. However in Medha Kotwal Lele v Union of India19, the petition highlighted a number of individual cases of sexual harassment and argued that the Vishaka Guidelines were not being effectively implemented. In particular, the petitioners argued that, despite the guidelines, women continued to be harassed in the workplace because the Vishaka Guidelines were being breached in both substance and spirit by state functionaries who harass women workers via legal and extra legal means, making them suffer and by insulting their dignity. The Court stated that the Vishaka Guidelines had to be implemented in form, substance and spirit in order to help bring gender parity by ensuring women can work with dignity, decency and due respect. It referred back that the Vishaka Guidelines had not been properly implemented by various States and Departments in India. The Court went on to note that some states appeared not to have implemented earlier Court decisions which had required them to make their legislation compliant with the Vishaka Guidelines.20

19 20

(2013) 1 SCC 297 http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/publications/.

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013
After a long time on 23rd April 2013, the legislature finally brought into force a comprehensive legislation dealing with the protection of women against sexual harassment at workplace by enacting The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013. The Act has in fact sought to widen the scope of the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court by bringing within its ambit (amongst other things) for example it has included a domestic worker under Section 2(e).

Definitions under the Act:Sexual Harassment:

The Act under Section 2n has defined sexual harassment to include any one or more of the following unwelcome acts or behaviour (whether directly or by implication) namely: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) physical contact and advances; a demand or request for sexual favours; making sexually coloured remarks; showing pornography; or any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

Further, the following may also amount to sexual harassment: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) implied or explicit promise of preferential treatment; (ii) implied or explicit threat of detrimental treatment; (iii) implied or explicit threat about present or future employment status; interference with work or creating an intimidating or offensive or hostile work environment; or (v) Humiliating treatment likely to affect health or safety.

There are various other terms like the employer, workplace etc. which has been comprehensively defined under the act.

Complaint Mechanism under the 2013 Act: The Act provides for the constitution of Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) (Sec. 4) at the work place and Local Complaints Committee (LCC) at district and block levels (Sec. 6). A District Officer (District Collector or Deputy Collector) shall be responsible for facilitating and monitoring the activities under the Act Every workplace employing 10 or more employees is required to constitute an ICC. The ICC is required to consist of at least four members, and its presiding officer is required to be a woman employed at a senior level. Further, one half of the members must be women. LCCs are to be set up by the appropriate government which shall receive complaints in respect of establishments that do not have ICCs on account of having fewer than 10 employees and to receive complaints from domestic workers.
Steps involved in the Complaint Process: Step I A complaint is to be made in writing by an aggrieved woman within 3 months of the date of the incident. The time limit may be extended for a further period of 3 months if, on account of certain circumstances, the woman was prevented from filing the complaint. Step II Upon receipt of the complaint, the ICC or LCC must proceed to make an inquiry in accordance with the service rules applicable to the respondent or in their absence, in accordance with rules framed under the Act. Step III The inquiry must be completed within a period of 90 days. In case of a complaint by a domestic worker, if in the opinion of the LCC a prima facie case exists, the LCC is required to forward the complaint to the police to register a case under the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code. Step IV Where the ICC finds that the allegations against the respondent are proven, it must submit a report to the employer to: (i) take action for sexual harassment as a misconduct in accordance with the provisions of the applicable service rules or where no service rules exist, in accordance with rules framed under the Act; (ii) to deduct from the salary or wages of the respondent such sum as it may consider appropriate to be paid to the aggrieved woman or to her legal heirs.

Step V The employer must act on these recommendations within 60 days. Penalties Where the employer fails to comply with the provisions of the Act, he shall be liable to be punished with a fine which may extend to Rs. 50,000 Journey Ahead It has been more than seven months since the Act came into force. But unfortunately there has been a failure on the part of the WCD ministry to notify the legislation .Moreover the rules specified under the legislation have not come into effect. As a result there is a lot of confusion especially among state governments, on whether the law can be implemented without the central government notifying the rules. However, looking at the rising number of reported complaints of sexual harassment it is evident that the new law has at least served to improve awareness about the obligations of employers and rights of employees in case of workplace sexual harassment. The resentment towards incidents of sexual harassment is also increasing. Perhaps this legislation will help the silenced voice of women audible by taking off the feet that coerce womens necks.21

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http://www.livelaw.in/understanding-the-sexual-harassment-of-women-at-workplace-prevention-prohibition-

and-redressal-act-2013/