This weekend we got a chance to interact with Ms. Sharmila Kher and seek her views (generally as someone who has been working for a decade for the rights of women and children and as an external member of the internal complaints committee of several organizations) on several facets of the law against sexual harassment at workplace. She was patient and kind enough to answer all our questions and share her experiences with us. Given below is what we discussed with her, and this conversation was very insightful.
What, in your experience, has been the common understanding of sexual harassment?
I have often found that amongst a majority of people, the term sexual harassment, is misconstrued to mean “touching” or any kind of physical contact such as rape or assault, thereby diluting the impact of other behaviours that add up to sexual harassment. I often hear, “I didn’t touch. I only sent messages.” Therefore, clearly, many people do not understand the mental impact of the sexually coloured remarks they make towards a woman or the offensive sexist jokes or images that they share with their female counterparts. It is extremely important, in my view, that through training and awareness sessions and otherwise, we drive home the point that a behaviour may be unwelcome to a woman and may constitute sexual harassment even if lewd remarks are made, pornographic material is shared, etc.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how many women would you say prefer filing a complaint of sexual harassment to leaving the job?
My experience of these 2 years points to an increased propensity to file cases over resigning. I would give it a rating of 8. However, I would like to add that women often contemplate resignation as an immediate response out of fear of repercussions.
I think the role of the corporation or the employer plays an important part here. If the woman feels supported by an active ICC and adequate advocacy, training, and sensitization have been done on the law related to the prevention of sexual harassment at work, then she will derive the courage to stand up for her rights. The law on its own may only act as a deterrent. The ultimate onus rests with the harassed person to be aware of her rights under the law and with the employer to be proactive in supporting the harassed. It is also critical that a conducive, healthy, and safe work environment be provided to every woman employee so she can deliver her job to her full potential.
What are some of the biggest fears in a complainant’s mind when she is considering filing a complaint? Do they come to you for advice before filing?
The biggest fear is ostracization and harassment by the prime accused and also by the other team members, and subsequent loss of face. I am embarrassed to say that in many cases, when someone files a complaint, other team members, who may have experienced the same or similar situations at the same or another workplace, show bias and fail to support their colleague more often than not, and instead of being neutral, carry the same preconceived notions of “she asked for it,” thereby leading to further harassment of the complainant. This “stereotyping,” in my opinion, is something we need to work on if we really want a future where men and women treat each other equally and with respect and work together in harmony at the workplace.
The other fear is that of a slowdown in their career growth. I often hear them say they feel like all their efforts will come to naught if they complain. My advice to them is simple: If you believe wrong has been done, “stand up and speak out.”. A safe workplace and a workplace without discrimination are your constitutional rights, and you must protect them fearlessly for yourself and your other colleagues.
Do you receive many false complaints? How do you differentiate between false or malicious complaints and a lack of evidence in a complaint?
I have been privy to complaints that lack evidence or do not fall under the ambit of the Act. This could be looked at as malicious intent in some cases. However, most of this stems from an improper understanding of the Act as well as a tendency to bring all cases to the ICC, irrespective of the nature of the case.
This points again to the need to reinforce workplace behaviours and a professional code of conduct for employees. The personal and the professional have to be clearly defined to reduce the grey areas.
Have you ever experienced any kind of pressure from an organization to deal with a complaint in a particular way?
I have been privileged to work with large organisations that have shown tremendous investment in improving work environments and creating safe environments. In fact, the seriousness and commitment that all these organisations have shown in cases of sexual harassment has injected in me a feeling of hope. I must add that all of us are on the learning curve, and a cooperative, collaborative approach will enable better outcomes. As an external ICC member from a women-centric organization, I am vigilant to the pressures, if any, and do my best to be unbiased and fair in all the committees.
Do you receive complaints of sexual harassment from male employees? Is it very often? What is the nature of such complaints, and how do you handle them?
I haven’t encountered a complaint from men, but I have dealt with cases where the man has gotten embroiled for no obvious fault. In all our training, we emphasise that, though the Act is strictly for women, we must remain cognizant of power play and possible harassment by women as well. Since the Act strictly allows only female employees to complain, my advice to men is that you may approach the police for severe harassment.
In your opinion, on a scale of 1 to 10, how gender-sensitive are Indian workplaces? What would your advice be to bridge gender gaps?
The workplace would score 6. I think the Act is well intentioned to help make workplaces safe for women, and it is the need of the hour given that most workplaces in India and globally are still male-dominated. The gaps are obvious and evident, as the workplace reflects societal biases. Patriarchy is pervasive, and there is a lot of stereotyping, particularly of women. Women are still looked at with the air of an outsider trying to make inroads in a male-dominated environment. This is creating additional discord amongst the workforce.
I would add cautiously here. The Act isn’t intended to distance men from women but to sensitise and train men to act responsibly with women and to enable women to have the rightful space as equal employees. I would focus on sensitising men, working on their mindsets, and finding ways and means to build an equitable workplace. We need to fix the mindset, not create paranoia about working together. This will certainly help bridge the gaps.
Lastly, what are the things that, in your opinion, external members should keep in mind when handling a complaint of sexual harassment?
I think external members must be well versed in the Act and be bias-free. The external committee member plays a critical role in ensuring justice is done, and she or he must at all times be a good listener. If she or he senses the involvement of management in an ICC decision, the external member is well within his or her rights to make it clear that the ICC recommendations are to be followed in letter and spirit as the ICC has an independent quasi-judicial jurisdiction. Above all, the external member must dedicate time and attention to ensure every workplace they represent is free from all forms of sexual harassment and all cases are dealt with with an iron hand to set examples for further dissuasion. This is a position of grave responsibility and must be treated with the gravitas it deserves.
Ms. Sharmila Kher has worked in a not-for-profit environment for almost 10 years and has constantly invested in the rights of women and children. Currently, she is the Head of Fundraising at SNEHA, an NGO that works in partnership with communities and health systems to build effective and replicable solutions, empowering women and their families in urban slums to improve their health. She serves as an external member of the internal complaints committee of several organizations and believes that workplaces can be improved and made more gender-sensitive. She has been constantly inspired to work on this subject by her two sons, both of whom are in the legal field.
The questions have been posed by Ms. Shivangi Prasad, the founder of POSH at Work and an advocate specializing in this subject. All the views expressed above constitute personal views and must not be construed as legal opinions at any point in time. The reference to the Law or the Act is to the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.