Gender-based issues and Sexual harassment in the workplace exist in any employees’ periphery. They might not be obviously noticeable but these chauvinistic behaviors are deeply rooted in many organizations. Sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual advance or conduct on the job that creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. It includes so many things that might be passed off as friendly gestures but some of them include unwelcome sexual advancements, lewd comments, stalking, and suggestive gestures.
I believe Gender diversity and equality at the workplace are still very hot issues. And in a profession, such as IT, where an overwhelming number of workers are male, it’s easy to overlook gender biases. Information Technology is such a male-dominant profession that harassment is often either overlooked or not even perceived. This is the danger zone of gender bias. Is it because of the assumption that majority of the women in this space portray masculine traits so there’s no chance they’ll be harassed? Or is this a case of male privilege? Many men continue to disregard the notion of male privilege creating an invisibility of the problem itself. The more this invisibility is encouraged the more gender problems will continue to escalate.
Don’t forget that men can sexually harass women, and women can sexually harass men. However, most of the cases that have been reported indicate that majority of sexual harassment claims and charges are brought by women claiming that they were sexually harassed by men. Is it that men shy away from talking about it or it’s true that they are the main perpetrators?
It might actually be difficult to report these cases as some employees claim that their complaints won’t be taken seriously, or they’ll have to continue to work in conditions that make them uncomfortable. A friend of mine who worked for one of the telcos had to entertain her boss for six months because she had a young kid and was trying to keep her job until she found something better. Women find themselves on the receiving end at least once in their employment journey.
These vices can happen everywhere and to anyone in the world. A New York Times article revealed how a previous job applicant, Sarah Kunst, received unwanted advances from 500 Startups’ co-founder Dave McClure after her interview. And not to mention the famous Bill Cosby.
Just recently ,Ushahidi, the global crisis-mapping platform headquartered in Kenya, made headlines for an alleged sexual harassment claim pitting an employee against a senior member of its team. Per information surfacing up on various blogs, this vice has been going on for a long time without any action being taken by the board.
It really amazes me that this type of behavior still occurs in the workplace and more so from the senior members. There is a reason why companies have had to implement policies regarding sexual harassment. Not only can it cause serious issues with your staff, it can come back to haunt your company legally and in the court of public opinion. This type of behavior detracts from productivity and morale and doesn’t serve any valid purpose, so there’s no reason to allow it to continue.
The Ushahidi story has bubbled up the tech ecosystem in Kenya and women leaders in the space are not taking anything to chance. To that effect, there’s a round-table discussion coming up for women whose purpose will be primarily to share experiences, offer words of encouragement and support, collaborate on practical advice about how to handle these situations in the future, and come together as a community of women with a unified voice against these chauvinistic practices.
Hopefully, with more honest conversations and discussions about it, we will see fewer and eventually zero instances of this barbaric vice at the workplace.
To attend the event, book your ticket(s) HERE.
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