Sexual harassment often occurs behind closed doors in the workplace. Employees who work in close proximity to one another may become too comfortable and may cross boundaries. Supervisors and business owners could leverage their authority for personal gain at the expense of others.
Groups of coworkers may create a hostile work environment that leaves others feeling anxious and unsafe. As work-from-home and hybrid employment arrangements become more common, the way that coworkers interact has evolved as well. Many employees interact exclusively through digital platforms, including email and video chat programs. It is possible for digital workplaces to be impacted by digital sexual harassment.
How do people who don’t directly interact with one another engage in sexual harassment?
Inappropriate videos, pictures and links
Sharing digital content with coworkers only takes a few clicks. Some professionals might misuse video conferencing apps to expose themselves to other employees. Others might send links to explicit content. Digital sexual harassment could even involve the creation of deepfake videos or images using one employee’s likeness. Creating or sharing inappropriate content online can constitute digital sexual harassment.
Unwanted solicitations and abusive messages
Electronic communications in writing or verbally can also lead to claims of sexual harassment. One employee might send repeated explicit advances to another. They might create a private group chat with every other co-worker where they talk negatively about one employee based on their appearance, sexuality or sex and then work together to harass that employee consistently.
In some cases, managers and supervisors might even engage in quid pro quo harassment. They may try to solicit sexual favors in exchange for job opportunities or threaten workplace punishments for declining their advances.
Anyone experiencing digital sexual harassment may need to document what has occurred for their own protection. Screenshots of messages, videos and images can help establish that inappropriate conduct has occurred in a digital workplace. Employees with documentation can then report the matter to management or take legal action if the company fails to protect them from continued sexual harassment.
Discussing a challenging workplace situation with a legal professional can help frustrated workers assert their rights and hold their employers accountable for allowing digital sexual harassment to occur.