Types of Sexual Harassment Covered by the Policy
The following lists of examples are illustrative of different kinds of sexual harassment:
- Hostile environment sexual harassment can include unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors or other conduct
of a sexual nature or disparaging comments that is sufficiently severe, persistent
or pervasive to have the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's
work or learning or creating an intimidating, hostile, abusive or offensive work or
learning environment. This includes:
- Gender harassment: generalized sexist statements and behavior that convey insulting or degrading attitudes about women. Examples include insulting remarks, offensive graffiti, whistling at someone, cat calls, obscene jokes or humor about sex or women in general.
- Seductive behavior: unwanted, inappropriate and offensive sexual advances. Examples include repeated unwanted sexual invitations, insistent requests for dinner, drinks, or dates, persistent letters, giving personal gifts, phone calls or other invitations.
- Sexual imposition: gross sexual imposition, such as unwanted touching, feeling, grabbing, hugging, kissing, patting or stroking, neck massage, or sexual assault.
- Sexual favoritism: awarding grades, providing recommendations, or granting opportunities or benefits because of an individual's submission to sexual advances or requests for sexual favors.
- Sex-related comments or gestures: comments or gestures with sexual content or sexual implications: Examples include sexual teasing, jokes, remarks or questions, personal questions about sexual life, kissing sounds, howling and smacking lips, simulating sexual acts, facial expressions, winking, throwing kisses or licking lips, spreading rumors or telling lies about a person's personal sex life or performance; touching oneself sexually or talking about one's sexual activity in front of others; turning discussions to sexual topics, asking about sexual fantasies, preferences or history, making sexual gestures with hands or through body movements, staring, looking a person up and down (elevator eyes).
- Quid pro quo sexual harassment occurs when there is an overt or implicit threat that an educational or employment
decision may be affected by an unwillingness to tolerate or accept sexual attentions
or submission to or rejection of such conduct is used as the basis for educational
or employment decisions. Examples include undeserved grades, negative recommendations
or performance evaluations, withholding of promotions and threat of disciplinary action
or termination. Quid pro quo harassment is unlawful whether the target resists and
suffers the threatened harm or submits and thus avoids the threatened harm.
- Sexual bribery: subtle or overt solicitation of sexual favor or other sex-linked behavior by promise of reward. Examples include money to meet personal needs, tickets to an event, preferential access to or use of equipment, space, tools, etc, a favorable recommendation for a valued assignment
- Sexual favoritism: awarding grades, providing recommendations, or granting opportunities or benefits because of an individual's submission to sexual advances or requests for sexual favors. Here a quid quo pro case may be established by others who show that sex was generally made a condition for receiving a benefit and thus the ultimate decision was based on willingness or unwillingness to tolerate or accept sexual attentions.