Mumbai, Oct 4 () Any misconduct against women
employees must be dealt with most sternly, the Bombay High Court today said and asked organisations to draw up a list of
"dos and dont's" for male employees over conduct towards female
staff.
A division bench headed by Justice V M Kanade referred to a
judgement of the US Supreme Court and cited that "sexual misconduct cannot be viewed in a
vacuum" and that employers and organisations must identify the
"underlying threat of violence" in such conduct against women.
The observations were made by the high court
while hearing a petition filed by a central government employee seeking action
against her superior over allegations of sexual harassment.
The bench today noted that organisations must
treat all complaints of sexual harassment seriously and without bias and that
it was also necessary to provide safeguards and assistance to female employees.
"In the past, such behaviour would be
ignored and terms as part of the work culture. It was even said that men had
said or done things inadvertently. But now all organisations must change with
the changing times. Any misconduct against women employees must be dealt with
most sternly," the court said.
The woman approached the high court after the
internal committee at her workplace ruled that while the incidents she had
reported against her superior did show that she had been inconvenienced and
harassed, the same did not amount to sexual harassment.
The internal committee had penalised and
demoted the superior. However, the woman sought harsher punishment for her
superior.
The court today denied to increase the
punishment and said it need not interfere with the committee's decision.
According
to the woman, between 2011 and 2013, her superior made several sexual advances
at her and when she began to openly spurn his advances, he resorted to
threatening her professional growth and career, insulting and humiliating her
in front of other employees, and isolating her by asking others not to talk to
her
05/10/2016
