It also seems like who helps report it can influence how a persons superiors/managers react. If older employers or employees who are respected by the higher ups report it, it seems to have more wait behind it.kfwilson6 wrote: ↑26 Jun 2018, 13:39It seems like it depends on a lot of factors like how many if anyone at all is willing to report it, if the jokes are reported to have been said in a more public setting, the level of vulgarity of the jokes. I actually know of someone who was reported several times at work for inappropriate jokes. He was reprimanded several times and ended up being seriously demoted because of it. I'm glad his organization took the reports seriously. I haven't heard any follow-up in the few years since this happened so I think the culprit took the demotion very seriously and has since ceased with that type of behavior at work.Lil Reads wrote: ↑26 Jun 2018, 13:17With the crude jokes, I think sometimes a person does that to cover themselves. The other people can verify it was said, but they will say, "It was a joke" then the person can deny it was aimed at a specific employee.kfwilson6 wrote: ↑21 Jun 2018, 13:13
There are also lots of situations that aren't clearly sexual harassment. Either the intentions are unclear, or people define sexual harassment differently. Technically, crude jokes can be considered sexual harassment. But if a group of coworkers are having lunch together and one coworker tells a joke and everyone laughs, the one person who finds it offensive may not even classify the joke as "sexual harassment" due to everyone else's response. So not only would that person not report it because he doesn't know if it fits the definition, he wouldn't want to report it if he thought know one else would agree with his feelings.
There is also a difficult line between sexual harassment and office romance. Especially in the flirting stage. One coworker may think he is merely flirting and showing interest so the other has an opportunity to respond. But if the response is unfavorable and the advances are unwanted, the second coworker may feel harassed.
Maybe there is also a bias in regards to how we deal with employees who make those jokes to a coworker when it is just the two of them.
An employee who makes those jokes in front of others or in more public settings can always brush it off as banter or jokes in a group so HR is less likely to intervene whereas HR seems to take it more seriously if someone is cornered or somehow isolated from the group. The latter scenario sounds more like specific targeting so HR might be more aware of the implications.
I really hope he did change his behavior and that others curbed their own behavior or helped prevent that from happening with someone else.