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Workplace Harassment

Summary/Abstract: Equality between women and men is one of the fundamental principles of European Union law. One of the EU objectives is to ensure equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women and to combat any form of discrimination on the grounds of gender. Equality between women and men is also an international issue. The EU has approached this issue, combining non-discrimination legislation with gender mainstreaming. A specific form of discrimination is harassment at work. Most attention has been given to sexual harassment that women (mainly but not exclusively) are subjected at workplace. According to the Council, the European Parliament and the Commission, sexual harassment constitutes a breach of the principle of equal treatment and is an affront to the dignity of women and men at work. In national legislation the concept of harassment is defined only by reference to sexual harassment, but literature speaks of another form of harassment: mobbing or bullying. In romanian legislation sexual harassment is regarded as a form of discrimination based on sex. Mobbing affects the right of each employee to the respect of dignity at work. The problem of sexual harassment has been acknowledged recently in the majority of the Member States and has resulted in the enactment of legislative acts. As far as mobbing is concerned, things have reached a different position. Most of EU members do not recognize the legal point of view and not incriminate mobbing as a national crime. In Romania there is not a legal measure which could protect workers against mobbing. Almost all people who are victims of harassment report negative consequences, not only in private matters, but also regarding their job. As regards the former, psychosomatic symptoms, loss of self-esteem, interference with private life are most commonly reported. As regards the latter, it appears that harassed employees experience a negative impact on their career more often than their harassers. Some specific groups are particularly vulnerable: divorced or separated women, new entrants to the labour market, those with irregular or precarious employment, women with disabilities, women from racial minorities, homosexuals and young men.

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