There are a lot of cases reported of sexual harassment at the workplace. Women all over the world have been sexually harassed, and they want a strong law to stop it. In India, the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan set the rules for Sexual Harassment at Workplace law (1997).
In 1992, a group of men
raped Bhanwari Devi, a Dalit woman who worked as a social worker for the
Government of Rajasthan's Rural Development Programme. This showed how common
sexual harassment is at workplaces in India. It touched people all over the
country and showed how dangerous it can be for women to work. The Supreme Court
made rules and told the Union of India to make a law to stop sexual harassment
in the workplace.
The main goal of these
guidelines was to give people a place to go if they had a problem with sexual
harassment at work. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention,
Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 was made because of these rules (POSH).
The Act is very important because it talks about the different kinds of sexual
harassment and how a woman can file a complaint about it.
Organizations are working
harder than ever to include people of all genders and backgrounds. The goal of
making workplaces safer for both men and women is the same. But it's impossible
to ignore the fact that women have been sexually harassed at work for
generations. The bright side is that more and more cases of sexual harassment
are being reported, both in India and around the world. The #metoo movement
brought up many of these cases last year. Whether it's that Google paid USD 135
million to two employees who were accused of sexual harassment at the company,
or that Harvey Weinstein has been accused of a number of things. Closer to
home, in FY 2019, Indian companies reported more cases of sexual harassment
than they did in FY 2018. The number of sexual harassment complaints at BSE 100
companies went up by 14% in FY 2019.
The Sexual Harassment of
Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 is a law
in India that is meant to protect women from sexual harassment at their place
of work. The Lok Sabha, which is the lower house of the Indian Parliament,
passed it on September 3, 2012. It was passed on February 26, 2013, by the
Rajya Sabha, which is the upper house of the Indian Parliament. The President
signed off on the Bill on April 23, 2013. The law went into effect on December
9, 2013. The Vishaka Guidelines for Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH),
which were put in place by the Supreme Court (SC) of India, were replaced by
this law. The International Labour Organization said that only a small number
of Indian employers were following this law. Even though the law says that any
workplace with more than 10 employees must follow it, most Indian employers
have not done so. The Sexual Harassment Act of 2013 is not being followed by
36% of Indian companies and 25% of MNCs, according to a FICCI-EY report from
November 2015. The government has said that if employers don't follow this law,
they will be punished in a harsh way.
The Constitutional backing
Equal rights for women
before the law (Article 14), Article 15(i) says that the State can't treat a
citizen differently just because of their religion, race, caste, sex, or place
of birth. Article 15:3 says that the state must make any special arrangements
that help women and children. Article 16 says that all residents should have
equal access to jobs and appointments to all State offices. Article 39 (a) says
that everyone has the right to an adequate means of subsistence, and Article 39
(d) says that men and women should get the same pay for the same work. To
promote justice based on equal chance and to offer free legal aid through the
right laws or programmes, or in any other way to make sure that no citizen is
denied the chance to get justice because of money or some other problem
(Article 39 A), the state must provide maternity leave and safe and fair
working conditions (Article 42), For the State to protect vulnerable groups of
people from social injustice and all kinds of exploitation, it should put an
emphasis on helping them reach their educational and economic goals (Article
46), Article 47 says that the state must improve its people's nutrition and
standard of living. Article 47 also says that the state must promote unity and
a sense of brotherhood among all Indians, and Article 51(A)(e) says that the
state must punish actions that hurt the dignity of women. Article 243 D(3) says
that at least one-third of the seats in every Panchayat that will be filled by
direct election must be set aside for women. These seats must also be given to
different parts of a Panchayat on a rotating basis, and at least one-third of
all Chairperson positions in Panchayats at each level must be set aside for
women.
In fact, Articles 14, 15,
and 21 of the Indian Constitution talk about freedom and equal rights. Because
of these articles, everyone has the right to be treated equally under the law,
to not be treated differently for any reason, and to live a free and independent
life. Sexual harassment at work is a very bad kind of sex discrimination that
can cause a lot of harm. Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India says
that this hurts a woman's fundamental rights, as well as her dignity and her
physical and mental health. As a result, productivity is low, which hurts
people's lives and ways of making a living. The Sexual Harassment of Women at
Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act) was
passed as a comprehensive law to make sure that every woman has a safe, secure,
and enabling environment that is free from sexual harassment.
The POSH Act's goals and how
it was passed
In order to deal with the
urgency of the situation, the Supreme Court made rules that put more emphasis
on the rights of women in international agreements. The Beijing Declaration
from the Fourth World Conference on Women and the Covenant on the Elimination
of Discrimination Against Women, among other things, pushed the Court to make a
clear statement about sexual harassment in the workplace. In the past, sexual
harassment was seen as bad behaviour at work or a crime if it went against any
of the laws. But after the Vishakha case, the law changed, and the problem
became a crime.
The Vishaka Guidelines were
made by the Supreme Court to make sure that businesses, organisations, and
people in power protect the basic rights of working women to equality and
dignity. Institutions had to meet three important conditions:
• Prohibition • Prevention •
Redress
In 2013, the government then
passed the POSH Act. The Act's goal is to give women equal access to the
workplace without sexual harassment, as was decided in the Vishaka case, as
long as the above three requirements are met. In addition to the laws that are
already in place, the Act gives women a civil right to sue. If a woman reports
sexual harassment at work, she has the right to both civil and criminal
remedies.
Beginning of the ACT
In 1997, the Supreme Court
of India issued guidelines for stopping sexual harassment at work in the case
of Vishaka and Others vs. State of Rajasthan2. The government passed the Sexual
Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act,
2013 (the POSH Act), and the rules that go along with it 6 years ago. The goal
of the POSH Act is to protect women from sexual harassment at work and stop it
from happening. Even though sections 354 (now A, B, C, and D), 376 (now A, B,
C, and D), and 509 of the IPC say that it is against the law to insult a
woman's modesty or rape her. The parts that have been changed now cover more
serious situations and protect women who are in someone else's care, custody,
or control. The purpose of both the POCSO Act and the Indecent Representation
of Women's Act was to protect young victims. Even though it's been 65 years,
there is still a need for Protective Prevention and Redress for women in the
workplace.
• The Supreme Court has questioned the controversial rules of the Bombay High Court that say the media can't report on cases of sexual harassment at work. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 (also called the "POSH Act") went into effect in 2013. The Act sets up a way to handle sexual harassment complaints in the workplace. With this law, India joined a small group of countries that have made sexual harassment in the workplace illegal at the national level. The Act and the Rules, which together are called the POSH Law, are meant to make India's workplaces safer and more secure for women by preventing, banning, and punishing sexual harassment.
Written By:
Taj Mahamood Baig [2nd Year, BA.LLB(Hons.)] under the guidance of Dr. Nagalatha Bathina, Associate Professor, Vignan Institute of Law.
Editorial Director:
Dr. Nagalatha Bathina, Associate Professor, Vignan Institute of Law.
Editors:
Dr. Praveen Kumar, Director, Vignan Institute of Law
Mr. L. Ashish Kumar, Assistant Professor, Vignan Institute of Law
Blog Managed By:
Taj Mahamood Baig [2nd Year, BA.LLB(Hons.)]