For the last twenty years or so, the issue of sexual harassment has received considerable attention especially since the inception of the feminist movement and the glaring examples of the Impeachment of President Clinton, the Senate's confirmation hearings for Anita Hill's charges against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas, among others, has heightened nearly everyone's interest in the topic (Mcafee1). Despite, widespread publicity about the perils of sexual harassment, surveys demonstrates that many businesses operating in the United States have yet to address the problem adequately. Moreover, recent news reports indicate that sexual harassment has reached the highest level of management. Although businesses know it exists, they appear unsure of what to do about it. As a result, the specter of employer liability for sexual harassment continues to loom over the workplace (Mcafee1). It is imperative that human resource managers thoroughly understand the legal concepts that are the basis of harassment litigation; so that they can help their companies avoid expensive lawsuits. Also, in order to protect themselves, companies need to understand the whole issue of sexual harassment in its entirety and they should not ignore the disturbing statistics behind this often hidden problem.
Since sexual harassment is a serious problem faced by many companies, failure to adopt a pro-active and aggressive stance on this issue, however, can result not only in costly lawsuits, but also in a loss of employee morale, decline in productivity, and an erosion of a company's public image. That businesses are still taking chances may reflect a failure to adequately consider the risks (Mcafee2). This may prove costly, because these risks have substantially increased in recent years. In 1991, Congress amended Title VII to permit victims of sexual harassment to recover damages (including punitive damages) under Federal Law.
