Sexual Harassment A Non-Adversarial Approach [Paperback]

In Sexual Harassment, Joan Kennedy Taylor questions establishment assumptions that women are, by definition, passive victims who require government help. She not only summarizes present law and policies but illustrates various non-governmental methods of countering expressive behavior that is offensive but not truly harassing, including a new feminist approach to company training programs.

A thoughtful analysis of sexual harassment behavior and policy in the modern American workplace. Lucidly written, eminently reasonable. . . Taylor brings a wonderful clarity to the problems of male/female relationships in the workplace. Enthusiastically recommended. In an unprecedentedly illuminating, logical, multi-dimensional and fair alternative to the present inflammatory legal system, this book shows the way to truly liberating sense and sensibility. This book is the long-awaited tool for those who suspect that sexual harassment can be addressed using commonsense and targeted skills rather than by fashionable rhetoric and legal threats. Both the thoroughness of the research and the clarity and straightforwardness of the writing protect the reader from falling prey to the common assumptions that permeate gender issues today. Joan Kennedy Taylor demonstrates that free speech and women's empowerment are as mutually reinforcing in the workplace as in other contexts. She makes a persuasive case that countering offensive workplace expression with more speech is a constructive response from the perspectives of all concerned: notably, the pioneer women workers in traditionally male-only occupations, who often feel ostracized and vilified; the men in such workplaces, who often are unprepared to interact with women co-workers; and the employers who want to promote cooperative relationships among their employees and to avoid lawsuits.