Attorney Margarette Macaulay yesterday accused Jamaica of wasting time, saying lawmakers should be drafting laws against sexual harassment rather than opting to draft policy.

“National policy does not bind anyone. I mean, it may bind ministries of government, but private concern is not bound by it,” said Macaulay.

“We should go to the law, which will give people relief and compensations. People have been getting away with (sexual harassment) for too long,” she said as presenter at a sexual harassment seminar put on by the Women’s Media Watch (WMW) at the Medallion Hall Hotel, St Andrew on Saturday.

Sexual harassment, described as any unwanted physical, verbal or other sexual conduct that offends or humiliates the recipient of the action, has shown to disproportionately affect women.

But it’s by no means limited to one gender.

Anecdotally, young men are increasingly victims in the workplace. And there is evidence that the harassment is male-female, female-male, and also same-sex advances.

There are two recognised forms that sexual harassment takes:

. quid pro quo – where job benefits, such as a promotion or a salary increase, are dependent on an employee supplying sexual favours or physical contact and where an employer refuses, such benefits are withheld; and

. poisoned work environment – where the workplace becomes unpleasant or unbearable because of ongoing insults, sexual innuendos and hostility.

The full extent of sexual harassment in the Jamaican workplace has never been documented as, seminar participants pointed out, there are people who simply do not acknowledge that it is a problem.

And, even those who acknowledge its negative impact, do not act against it, since reporting its occurrence more often than not works to their detriment.

These issues were captured in a 2005 study done by WMW and from which Macaulay yesterday picked statistics to reinforce her point of the need to have it legislated so it can be policed and punished.

Of the persons interviewed for the study, none had seen any results from reporting sexual harassment. At the same time, 83 per cent had been subject to suggestive remarks at the workplace; 84 per cent had received a pat on the buttocks; and 67 per cent had been greeted with the use of words like ‘honey’ and ‘sweetheart’ from the boss.

Macaulay added that the issue was much too serious not to be included in the laws, but as it is, she said, discrimination on the basis of sex was not even recognised in the constitution.

“We do not have any constitutional right not to be discriminated against on the basis of sex. You can have your rights upheld if you are discriminated against if you a Rastafarian (for example). You can have your rights upheld if you are discriminated against on the basis of your race, but not if you are discriminated against if you are a man or if you are a woman.”

WMW, working with Macaulay and others, has drafted a number of proposals on how legislation against sexual harassment could be crafted, making it a criminal offence, whether perpetuated at work, in health and education institutions or homes for the elderly and children.

Government, meantine, has given no timeline for finalising the policy it is drafting.

“There is a culture of inaction because this is a sexist society,” said Macaulay.

Recommended steps to take when sexually harassed

For the employee:

. Do not ignore it! Ensure that the harasser knows that his or her action is not welcomed.

. Document the incident(s), taking note of any witnesses to the exchange.

. Find out if the workplace has a sexual harassment policy.

. Report the incident to a union where one exists, and to management.

For the employer:

. Formulate sexual harassment policy.

. Educate employees, including the management team, on sexual harassment through seminars, workshops or via some other means.

. Investigate all reports of sexual harassment.