Do you think ogling is a form of sexual harassment?

[Alone]

Originally posted by: LolaWiz
I would consider what he is doing as sexual harassement for sure.
HOWEVER, what is she wearing? if it is typical work clothing, yes, that is harassement, but if she is wearing VERY short skirts and low cut blosues... then she is asking for it

If I put a sign on my back saying "Shoot Me" does that mean you should, or are in any way allowed to shoot me?

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: UpgradeFailure
Like this

Thank you. :beer:

 

[49erinnc]

The more I read the OP, the more I would fear this guy's obsession/infatuation, escalating to a point where he acts upon it in a devious way. Based on the the OP's description, I think it's probably more inappropriate than sexual harassment but making comments definitely pushes it towards the latter.

If this is something that happens every single day then I'm not sure that someone shouldn't say something to the guy. You never know what's going on in someone's head and what their next action will be in a situation like that.

 

[Ameesh]

at what point does this become a thought crime, its a slippery slope you are walking down

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: LolaWiz
I would consider what he is doing as sexual harassement for sure.
HOWEVER, what is she wearing? if it is typical work clothing, yes, that is harassement, but if she is wearing VERY short skirts and low cut blosues... then she is asking for it

She dresses pretty appropriately almost all of the time. On Fridays we get to dress down and wear jeans which to be frank with you (IMHO) look hot on certain women... but other than that I can honestly say I have never seen her wear anything "slutty" to work.

 

[MisterJackson]

Originally posted by: Ameesh
at what point does this become a thought crime, its a slippery slope you are walking down

Who said crime? Jesus man, this isn't Minority Report

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: Ameesh
at what point does this become a thought crime, its a slippery slope you are walking down

i know i know... i'm not passing judgement on anyone I just like to hear what people think about it.

btw I had to LOL @ the Mexican comment

 

[Ricochet]

This is probably one of those situation where if the woman confronted the janitor about it and leave it out of company business, it could easily be resolved.

Of course, if you knew about this it wouldn't hurt for you to pull this janitor aside and address this.

 

[armstrda]

asdfsaf

 

[KeithTalent]

If she feels uncomfortable or threatened in any way, it is harassment.

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: ricochet
This is probably one of those situation where if the woman confronted the janitor about it and leave it out of company business, it could easily be resolved.

Of course, if you knew about this it wouldn't hurt for you to pull this janitor aside and address this.

She said she doesn't want to cause any commotion. At that point I kinda told her that it is a problem in today's society when this behaviour doesn't get put to a stop more often... and that if she didn't nip it in the bud then it could be happening to other women and escalate into something else.

 

[Chryso]

Originally posted by: meltdown75

Originally posted by: pontifex
you might want to stop that if you want to keep your job

who the fvck standing in front of someone in an elevator eyeing them up and down?

lol... & for clarification, she is facing the door / buttons. he is facing her.

Could he just be leaning against the wall in the elevator? I sometimes lean back against the side of the elevator which means I am not facing the doors.

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: Chryso
Could he just be leaning against the wall in the elevator? I sometimes lean back against the side of the elevator which means I am not facing the doors.

quite possible, and quite possible to do it without gawking a hole right through her clothes.

 

[Kadarin]

Sounds like harassment to me. In the workplace, you should always maintain professional decorum.

 

[Ricochet]

Originally posted by: MisterJackson
I bet the janitor is Mexican (yes I'm making a sweeping generalization, but I make it based on experience). I haven't met a Mexican guy that doesn't start giving that creepy, unblinking "I'm gonna rape you" stare any time they see a good looking girl. It's more than common around here.

Mexicans do have a machismo culture (perhaps even most Central and South America). Some of the girls I knew who went on missionaries down there experienced it. It is not uncommon for men to whistle and holler when seeing a hot woman walking around. Women are expected be flattered by it. They don't intend to sexually harrass, much less want to rape a girl, however. It's a culture they grew up with and not perceived as out of the ordinary behavior. Of course, this is not accepted in the work culture.

 

[moshquerade]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
Context:

A woman working in an office building goes for coffee and a breakfast sandwich every morning. As she walks through the lobby, one of the janitorial staff undresses her with his eyes. It happens on a fairly consistent basis. She has even overheard him commenting on her form and appearance when she is not *quite* out of earshot.

He has been in the elevator with her alone before, and stands facing her, eyeing her up and down, making her quite uncomfortable.

Do you think his behaviour constitutes sexual harassement, or is just a bit inappropriate?

Discuss.

edit: FYI I'm not going to rat on this guy, I just like to see what other people think of this.

if he is making her feel uncomfortable, then yes.

 

[pontifex]

How about this diagram?

 

[MisterJackson]

Originally posted by: pontifex
How about this diagram?

Skirt's not short enough!

 

[jiggahertz]

Originally posted by: ricochet

Originally posted by: MisterJackson
I bet the janitor is Mexican (yes I'm making a sweeping generalization, but I make it based on experience). I haven't met a Mexican guy that doesn't start giving that creepy, unblinking "I'm gonna rape you" stare any time they see a good looking girl. It's more than common around here.

Mexicans do have a machismo culture (perhaps even most Central and South America). Some of the girls I knew who went on missionaries down there experienced it. It is not uncommon for men to whistle and holler when seeing a hot woman walking around. Women are expected be flattered by it. They don't intend to sexually harrass, much less want to rape a girl, however. It's a culture they grew up with and not perceived as out of the ordinary behavior. Of course, this is not accepted in the work culture.

I think you mean missions, unless I'm totally misunderstanding the story.

 

[jtvang125]

I'm sorry. I didn't know I could get fired for that. I'll try to make it less noticeable next time.

 

[Bryophyte]

In the context you've described, it is absolutely inappropriate and it would be fair to call it sexual harassment. The fact that he comments about her body while on the job is proof enough. Even if he wasn't commenting, the staring and eyeing her from top to bottom repeatedly is grounds for firing or at least a warning (with notes in his employment records.)

 

[Qwest]

pics!

 

[Uppsala9496]

The commenting makes it an easy case.
Without the commenting, there could still be a strong case for sexual harassment.

 

[ryan256]

The audible comment bit constitutes harassment.
However... simply staring. Sorry I can't equate that with harassment. Standing there thinking what you want while not acting upon it in any way is every guy's right. You're in public and have no reasonable expectation not to be looked at while in common areas.

 

[Uppsala9496]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
He has been in the elevator with her alone before, and stands facing her, eyeing her up and down, making her quite uncomfortable.

Do you think his behaviour constitutes sexual harassement, or is just a bit inappropriate?

Discuss.

edit: FYI I'm not going to rat on this guy, I just like to see what other people think of this.

I work in employment practices liability, and I have seen sexual harassment lawsuits for this before. All she has to do is complain, and the company will need to make sure he doesn't get on the elevator alone with her, and that he no longer oogles her. If he does, she can make a nice buck in court. The 9th circuit in CA is very receptive to this.