Saturday, November 5, 2011

Paid by Beauty and Pay the Price

Sexual harassment in the workplace in the U.S. has been steadily rising. Most cases go unheard, but for those that are, more women will seek help than men.

Men feel emasculated if a female is paid more than himself. This also leads to the fact that attractive women get paid more than those considered unattractive. In the article in Forbes "How The Herman Cain Allegations Are Redefining Sexual Harassment" by Larissa Faw, a quote from Anna North a writer from Jezebel said that "Women’s appearances are also scrutinized in other ways in the workplace, from dress to facial features — a recent study even found that women were perceived as more competent when they were wearing makeup.”

This is not a surprise, women are still being referred to as girls and not women. A woman could get paid more from her looks, but pays the price of harassment in the work place. Women are more willing to put up with "women jokes" and other small degrading instances than immediately report something.


If this occurs so constantly that we have to ignore the small comments that lead to sexual harassment, then something must be done and action should be taken right away. There is the fear that a complaint could taint your image or make you appear to be a whining woman.


That is not so. A woman of power and strength should always stand up and do what is right, there is no problem too small or too big. Sexual harassment should not lead to an internal battle of "to tell or not to tell". 


But for those who report these instances, know that you are not alone. The article states that men also suffer and report sexual assault from other men in the workplace.


For the full length Forbes article: How The Herman Cain Allegations Are Redefining Sexual Harassment

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