In general, sexual harassment is any form of sexually related behaviour that:

• you do not want;
• offends, humiliates or intimidates you; or
• in the circumstances, a reasonable person should have expected would offend, humiliate or intimidate you.

Sexual harassment can happen to anyone at any age. Sexual harassment can happen to you at school or work or when you are purchasing goods or services or looking for accommodation. You do not have to put up with sexual harassment. If you think that you have been sexually harassed you can complain to the Anti-Discrimination Commission in your State/Territory or the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. You should first of all consult a Personal Injury Lawyer to assist you with this complaint and its requirements.

Depending on the circumstances, each of the following kinds of behaviour may be deemed Sexual harassment:-

• material that is sexist, sexually explicit, homophobic (anti-gay) etc and is displayed in the workplace, circulated, or put in someone's workspace or belongings, or on a computer, a fax machine or on the internet;
• verbal abuse or comments that put down or stereotype people because of their sex, pregnancy, homosexuality, marital status, or transgender (transsexuality);
• jokes based on gender, pregnancy, marital status, homosexuality, or transgender (transsexuality). There is a difference between harmless humour which may refer to gender, race and so on and using a sexist or other type of stereotyping joke to have a "dig" at someone (and therefore to harass them). If this difference is not clear or if someone is offended, the behaviour should stop immediately.

Further examples are:

• sexually offensive gestures based on sex and so on;
• ignoring, isolating or segregating a person or group because of their sex, homosexuality, transgender (transsexuality) and so on;
• staring or leering in a sexual manner;
• sexual or physical contact, such as slapping, kissing or touching;
• intrusive questions about sexual activity;
• sexual assault (a crime as well, of course, under the Crimes Act);
• unwelcome wolf whistling;
• repeated sexual invitations when the person invited has refused similar invitations before;
• initiation ceremonies that involve unwelcome sexual, sexist, and so on behaviour such as "greasing" or "grazing";

Sexual harassment which occurs in the street is not something which you can complain to the Anti-Discrimination Commission or the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission about, as these organisations only deal with sexual harassment which occurs in certain situations, such as at work or school or when you are purchasing goods or services. However, remember that there are criminal laws like assault and other offences which can protect you from unwanted sexual behaviour.

The guidelines applicable to a claim of Sexual harassment, are once again strictly bound by time and entitlement restrictions.

This site can put you in contact with experienced Personal Injury Lawyers around Australia who can advise victims of sexual harassment and also advise companies on how to minimise the risk of a claim being brought against them. This can be done by way of training techniques in prevention and integrated systems etc.

If you believe that your own circumstances fit into one or more of the above examples, then please Do Not delay your action or enquiry any longer. Make immediate contact with a Personal Injury Lawyer today, before it is too late!

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