Sexual harassment in the workplace is often characterized as a female problem, where women are subjected to inappropriate behaviors by men. While this is the case for a vast majority of harassment claims, statistics show that men are also dealing with the disturbing effects of sexual harassment within the workplace.
As reported by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the percentage of sexual harassment charges filed by men increased from 11.6% in 1997 to 16.3% in 2011. One reason for this increase stems from the 1998 Supreme Court case Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services. The court held that sexual harassment among same genders constitutes a form of discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This groundbreaking decision cleared the way for men to file formal charges when faced with harassing behaviors by other men.
