Sexual Harassment at the Workplace

Sexual harassment is rooted in cultural practices and is exacerbated by power relations at the workplace. Unless there is enough emphasis on sensitisation at the workplace, legal changes are hardly likely to be successful. Workplaces need to frame their own comprehensive policies on how they will deal with sexual harassment. Instead of cobbling together committees at the court's intervention, a system and a route of redress should already be in place. The draft bill on sexual harassment attempts to address some of the complexities of this issue, but much more clarity and specificity is needed to avoid the creation of a law that might need another extended campaign of reform.