‘Sooting’ is sexual harassment

SOOTING,” a type of catcalling, has been listed as a form of sexual harassment in the National Workplace Policy on Sexual Harassment.

The policy was announced on Friday in Parliament by Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus and posted on the ministry’s website yesterday. It seeks to define and prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, identify and address relevant issues, and provide guidance on actions that may be taken by main stakeholders, namely victims, observers, employers, workers and the government.

It says, “Currently, the law is silent on the issue of sexual harassment in TT, and therefore lacks definitions or specific indicators to determine what type of behaviour constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace. This silence undermines efforts to prevent and treat with sexual harassment matters.”

The types of sexual harassment included physical and verbal as well as non-verbal (sooting, sexually suggestive gestures and stalking) and written/graphic (sexual e-mails, letters, messages, pictures, texts, displays of sexually-explicit photographic and pornographic materials, calendars and emojis).

The policy says occasional compliments that are socially and culturally acceptable and appropriate are generally not considered sexual harassment. “However, our social and cultural values, the norms and attitudes of our society coupled with the idiosyncratic way in which people speak or what is considered ‘picong’ creates a degree of subjectivity over what exactly is behaviour that constitutes or does not constitute sexual harassment. The perceptions in different contexts of what constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace are extremely diverse, but the key characteristic of sexual harassment is that it is unwelcome and/or unwanted by the recipient.”

The policy added one of the most common standards is that the behaviour has to be unreasonable.

Government’s goal, it says, is to take a zero-tolerance stance on any matter concerning sexual harassment in the workplace. It addresses: the procedure which should be followed by both employers and workers when sexual harassment claims arise; legislative avenues currently in place for redress; recommendations for legislative and administrative action to ensure everyone is protected from sexual harassment, and by extension workplace violence; and the Government’s commitment to respect, preserve and promote human rights in the workplace.

The policy pointed out there is an absence of collective data and research which accurately reflects the prevalence of sexual harassment in the workplace. It quoted the National Women’s Health Survey for TT, 2017, commissioned by Caribbean DEVTrends and the Inter-American Development Bank, which identified that 13 per cent of women experienced sexual harassment at work, on the job, in public transport and public spaces.

The highest prevalence of this type of harassment was in the form of electronic messages with sexual content (eight per cent) and being groped in a public space (seven per cent). The survey also suggested, that in certain instances, as many as 84 per cent of sexual harassment experiences were unreported.

This policy treats with allegations made in good faith, and also addresses false allegations of sexual harassment in the workplace, saying, “Such allegations can ruin individuals, families, businesses and other institutions, regardless of whether or not they are disproven.”

The policy also pointed out that migrant workers experience sexual and other types of exploitation as well as sexual harassment at work.

“Migrant workers and in particular female migrant workers face several vulnerabilities in domestic live-in situations, services sector and construction work. They often may not or cannot appeal to authorities for protection.”

It stressed that every employer must therefore take steps to develop, implement and promote a sexual harassment policy suitable to the structure of their particular workplace.

“The failure of an employer to swiftly and appropriately address a complaint of sexual harassment, having become/made aware of its existence, can result in severe legal, financial and social consequences.”