End the culture of sexual harassment

End the culture of sexual harassment

Social mores must change, corporate rules bite.

The #MeToo movement has finally made it to India, if we discount the naming of academics of Indian origin in a list inspired from the US last year. It began with Bollywood actor Tanushree Dutta denouncing sexual harassment on film sets and her victimisation for raising the issue. In the past couple of days, there has been a steady outpouring from women, mostly in media. This is an important moment that will hopefully change the culture at the workplace and force organisations to take complaints of sexual harassment seriously, and take steps to create work environments that are safe for women.

This coming out by a small number of women is an act of immense personal courage. It must embolden other women similarly mistreated to speak out, besides compelling organisations across the board to take all necessary steps to remove a major hindrance to women’s participation in the workforce. For these acts of courage on the part of multiple women to have a lasting impact beyond public catharsis, organisations must look inward. The normalisation of harassment as a regrettable price that women must pay for having a professional career must cease. India has a robust law dealing with sexual harassment at the workplace. It requires organisations to set up Internal Complaints Committees where women can register their complaints. However, far too often, these committees have been dysfunctional or ineffective. The cost of complaining has been too high. It is time to implement the law more effectively, both in letter and spirit.

But the #MeToo moment must be not just about organisations but also about addressing the societal and cultural moorings that accommodate, and sometimes even promote, misogyny. It should push us to look more closely at the behaviour of men in positions of power and those of their enablers, who sadly often include women, including by making false accusations. Sexual harassment is unacceptable, there are no mitigating factors. We must act now and decisively, for the sake of those who have spoken out, and of those who are yet too young to speak.