A Lot Of Women Are Victims Of Sexual Harassment At Work

[Jai Dee]

A lot of women are victims of sexual harassments at their workplaces

A study has found that a lot of women and interns have been victims of sexual harassments at their workplaces by their supervisors and colleagues.

Nartreudee Denduang (นาถฤดี เด่นดวง), a researcher at Mahidol University’s faculty of social science and humanities, said harassments could be physical and verbal and sometimes women were intimidated by supervisors or co-workers or forced to have sex with them.

Ms. Nartreudee said the victims could be under a lot of stress and could not concentrate on their work. Most women dared not to go public about the harassments because they were not certain they would be treated fairly.

Ms. Nartreudee said employers, employees and members of society can help protect women from harassments by boycotting wrongdoers and taking legal action against them.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 13 July 2006

[astral]

If there was a study done, where are the figures to support the allegation?

If this is the level of research in Thailand, it is no wonder the degrees awarded are so lowly regarded.

[donna]

i can give you my account of sexual harassment just this week....

i am working in an office of 5. i am the only farang and the only female in the office. i think i am a good sport and can laugh at myself easily enough. but this week was way too much. one little prick i work with though it would be funny to email me a picture of an extremely overweight woman in her underwear. but the heading of the email was something like 'sexy donna'. i had a chuckle at it but didnt really think it was funny. distasteful really, and coming from the mind of a very immature young boy.

when i came into work the next day, he had printed out the picture and stuck it up on the wall with 'someone who work here' above it (yes, he didnt get the english right). taking offence, i ripped it down, swore at him and told him to grow up.

i AM a bigger girl. but im not anything like this picture that was put up. i am the first one to poke fun at myself, but i find that this kind of 'humour' is that of an imbecile. i have not been here for one month yet, and he feels that he can just do this to me!

i told my GM about it, and also the owner/director. they were equally as disgusted as i was. in the west, this little prick would be out on his ass, or at the lightest, receive a strong warning. but here, he gets nothing.

another incident had him telling me he wanted a certain report. now, not knowing where to get the information from, i asked him to show me. of course he made some snide remark about the stupid farang, but i brushed it off. when he next asked me for this daily report, the following day, i said that i was busy and that he would get it when i had done what i was doing (this was not said in a rude way) and he came back with 'im senior to you (he's not) so you will do it when i tell you to'.

but ive got the last laugh really. my boss gave me the company car yesterday to use as long as i like, and he gets stuck on his motorcycle.

som nam naa.

[jamie46]

sexual harrassment panda. crude but funny.

[donna]

so what actually IS your point, jamie46? are you saying that i should just let it be?!

For your information i am not a "crack whore or mutt ugly anti-depressant popping e-haa-ni" as you say.

why should I give HIM the break for heavens sake? im not the one who actually did anything wrong here.

and size of mickeys or anything else does not concern me whilst at work. work is work and thats about it to me.

[Minburi]

so what actually IS your point, jamie46? are you saying that i should just let it be?!

For your information i am not a "crack whore or mutt ugly anti-depressant popping e-haa-ni" as you say.

why should I give HIM the break for heavens sake? im not the one who actually did anything wrong here.

and size of mickeys or anything else does not concern me whilst at work. work is work and thats about it to me.

He is very much in the wrong

But then there is the whole Thai thing about saving face.

I would recommend you be more careful around him as you have insulted him. No I am not taking his side at all. But sometimes Thai see things differently is all.

Nam-Jai

[donna]

thanks minburi. he only lost face with me because i would not do that with anyone else in the office. but then im a woman, a new staff member, and farang. triple whammy there! precious little thing he is.

but, yes, i am watching my back. i actually dont speak to him full stop. and he is the same with me. he has, apparently, been spoken to about it, and i dont know what his reaction was (nor do i care to tell you the truth).

i am sure that this will one day blow over, but for now it is still making my blood boil, so best to keep to myself and say nothing.

(my swearing at him was only "*$&%ing grow up idiot. i dont find that funny at all" so it wasnt too bad really, compared to what i SHOULD have given him)

[tourleadersi]

Strewth Donna what a difficult one to deal with. The guy is an obvious spanner, but making him aware of that might cause him to loose face and begin to act like the whole tool box!

Not being a female in Thailand (or anywhere else for that matter!), or having to work here I'm not sure what to say. Perhaps going out for a coffee with him after work and setting the record straight might do it? (I'm sure people with more knowledge on the matter will say if that is a major no no).

Good luck with it, and let me say this as a man. Poking fun at a woman in that way in the workplace is bang out of order. I love having a laugh at work, get a little cheeky at times, but I would never do something like that. The guy is a toad.

[Minburi]

thanks minburi. he only lost face with me because i would not do that with anyone else in the office. but then im a woman, a new staff member, and farang. triple whammy there! precious little thing he is.

but, yes, i am watching my back. i actually dont speak to him full stop. and he is the same with me. he has, apparently, been spoken to about it, and i dont know what his reaction was (nor do i care to tell you the truth).

i am sure that this will one day blow over, but for now it is still making my blood boil, so best to keep to myself and say nothing.

(my swearing at him was only "*$&%ing grow up idiot. i dont find that funny at all" so it wasnt too bad really, compared to what i SHOULD have given him)

What you and I may see as minor maybe not so little to him is all I am saying. Enfact we may not even know we have done something to offend the Thai person. A slighted Thai male(Not all of them) Can be a boiling pot. Please please do not get me wrong in that I am saying to just take it..No..STand up and protect yourselve in what every where seems right to you. Thailand as you more then likely know is still a very male dominated system in some aspects.

I have a friend here in Bangkok who teaches o.k. And he called a student out for cheating during an exam.SO according to some of the Thai Teachers in the school the student has lost face for being caught and the teacher for calling him out has lost face for calling him out and that he the teacher should have looked the other way.

Confusing? Was to me.

[Thaising]

Well at least you have put up your displeasure across for him to see. Since you are the only farang woman, be brave and hold your dignity. Again, Thailand is still a male dominated society, and as tourleadersi said, have a cup of coffee with him and set the record straight. I doubt he will dare to do it again once you state your position clearly.

[GuestHouse]

Having given assistance to a Thai female college bringing charges under our corporate complaints procedure against a Thai male college in response to him committing a serious sexual assault, I've had an insight into exactly the kind of difficulties Thai women face in seeking a sexual threat free workplace.

Our Thai management behaved shamefully, first they tried to cover-up the problem, then tried to pressure the victim into withdrawing the charge and finally went into a full blown 'No Smoke Without Fire' insinuation over the woman and her 'respectability'.

Under our corporate procedure, sexual assault is gross misconduct and warrants instant dismissal - Getting our Thai management to act on that was almost impossible.

And when our corporate headquarters responded to the complaint with training workshops on this issue, more than a few Thai male employees bitterly resented being told the limits of their behavior while receiving a company paycheck.

[tourleadersi]

Tell me, is this kind of behaviour by some thai men largely reserved for single women in the workplace, or are married women targetted just as equally? By no means saying that there should be a distinction, all women should be able to work in a harassment free environment. Its just that I can imagine that with the whole loss of face thing, if a Thai man discovered another guy was harassing his wife, there would be hel_l to pay. Or am I being way off the mark here?

[GuestHouse]

all women should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

everyone should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

The flipside of an anti harrassment policy that comes with an instant dismissal clause, which when added to the hardening of attitutes with respect to sexual harrassment has got to the point were an accusation can ruin a career.

A contested accusation lead to my employer's fitting cameras in the lifts, tea rooms and printer rooms, to provide equal protection - against assault and against false accustation.

[Donz]

At my old job in Chatswood Sydney i was accused of sexual harrassment because i said to a girl "thats a nice top", I even got a formal warning in writing and couldnt do anything about it.

Just becasue she had big tits she thought I was being a smart ass.

Then later in the year at our Christmas party she tried to hook up with me??

where is the logic in that??

[kat]

Sorry to hear about that Donna. I agree with a previous poster - the guy is a toad. I don't agree with you asking him out to coffee, because that may not mean the same thing to him as it does to us.

I was discriminated against in BKK for a job because the interviewer's psycho Thai wife didn't want us sharing an office.

*And by the way (Astral), this news article is merely an account of the report, so it's a bit premature to belittle a report which you haven't seen.

Edited July 13, 2006 by kat

[splitlid]

interesting topic.

my GF was at a works party and was nearly sexually assulted by a drunk work collegue,when she complained about it, she was made to feel that it was her fault and was suggested that she led him on!!!!!!!!!

thai mens attitudes to women is still jurassic!!!!!!

(tried to spell neanderthral)

anyway, i think it is a long way away before we see equal rights at the work place.

hopefully it will not get anywhere as bad as the US or UK. BUT DEFINATELY NEEDS SOME MAJOR ATTENTION

[tourleadersi]

all women should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

everyone should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

I agree GH but this topic was about sexual harrassment and women at work hence my statement.

I've seen men being bullied at work by both male and female employees. You've just got to stand up to them. The first time I stood up to bullies it was two 10 year olds knocking a 5 year old around. I was eight and stepped in. One broken nose and hand later (mine) they lost interest. They never bothered him again though. I have never taken a whipping like that since.

Kat doesn't seem to think a coffee would work as it might be misinterpreted. How about getting a third to come along, or would that be construed as the two of them ganging up and making him loose what little face he has left?

[whopper]

my sympathies to anyone who must work here!

Great place to retire though!

[donna]

i dont think that going for a coffee will help my situation. he ignores me most of the time (as i do him) and it suits me fine. to tell you the truth, im not interested in being his friend. i dont care what he thinks, and he is a small minded island boy who has nothing better to do than make people feel bad by his stupid 'jokes'.

im better than that and will do my job, do it well, and not deal with him.

thanks for the support everyone. its come at a good time.

all women should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

everyone should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

I agree GH but this topic was about sexual harrassment and women at work hence my statement.

I've seen men being bullied at work by both male and female employees. You've just got to stand up to them. The first time I stood up to bullies it was two 10 year olds knocking a 5 year old around. I was eight and stepped in. One broken nose and hand later (mine) they lost interest. They never bothered him again though. I have never taken a whipping like that since.

Kat doesn't seem to think a coffee would work as it might be misinterpreted. How about getting a third to come along, or would that be construed as the two of them ganging up and making him loose what little face he has left?

[raybkk]

i dont think that going for a coffee will help my situation. he ignores me most of the time (as i do him) and it suits me fine. to tell you the truth, im not interested in being his friend. i dont care what he thinks, and he is a small minded island boy who has nothing better to do than make people feel bad by his stupid 'jokes'.

im better than that and will do my job, do it well, and not deal with him.

thanks for the support everyone. its come at a good time.

Who is harassing who?

Best thing to deal with this case is to find a simular picture and suit him in that. Post it next to yours on the board. All in the office will have a laugh about it and the ice is broken. Friends forever and they know you stood up for your self.

However now you have enemies forever and that just after having started the job.

all women should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

everyone should be able to work in a harassment free environment.

I agree GH but this topic was about sexual harrassment and women at work hence my statement.

I've seen men being bullied at work by both male and female employees. You've just got to stand up to them. The first time I stood up to bullies it was two 10 year olds knocking a 5 year old around. I was eight and stepped in. One broken nose and hand later (mine) they lost interest. They never bothered him again though. I have never taken a whipping like that since.

Kat doesn't seem to think a coffee would work as it might be misinterpreted. How about getting a third to come along, or would that be construed as the two of them ganging up and making him loose what little face he has left?

[donna]

i dont think that an eye for an eye is the way to go about things raybkk. that just (in my humble opinion) fuels things. i would rather just let this blow over, and i am sure that it will eventually do so.

i am not harassing him in any way. what do you mean by that? so what if i call him a small minded island boy? its the truth. how should i have put it? narrow minded? inexperienced? chauvanistic? take your pick. whatever you want to call it, is is simply inappropriate behaviour in a workplace.

[John K]

I am sure the people in the states who are reading this feel uncomfortable. The sexual harassment laws there have become unbearable. You can’t even complement someone on their appearance without crossing the line. In fact I have heard of some cases where sexual harassment was perceived where none existed and the person had to quit. (That was some as in more than one) That has simply gone too far in my mind. Overt harassment I agree with you Donna, but to lose your job because you smiled at someone and they took it the wrong way...absolutely wrong. Childishness and maturity, two completely different things.

[donna]

sure. im not saying that this guy should lose his job over what has happened to me. god no. i just dont want him to do it again.

i agree that the laws in the west have been taken to an extreme and i disagree with the way people are treated with regards to harassment.

i find that generally speaking, women get away with a lot more than men do in the workplace. i mean, a man has to make one comment about the size of a womans breats and he is targetted for harassment. yet, if that same woman said something about the size of a mans penis, i doubt that anything would come of it.

many of you may disagree with me here, but this is the way that i see it. right or wrong, i dont know, but its my opinion.

i suspect that if a man were to complain about a woman making such a comment he would be labelled a pussy, wuss, blouse - whatever - and i dont feel it would be taken seriously.

i hate double standards, but they do exist. especially when it comes to sexual harassment in the workplace.

[Charma]

At my old job in Chatswood Sydney i was accused of sexual harrassment because i said to a girl "thats a nice top", I even got a formal warning in writing and couldnt do anything about it.

Just becasue she had big tits she thought I was being a smart ass.

Then later in the year at our Christmas party she tried to hook up with me??

where is the logic in that??

Where were your eyes pointing when you made the comment?

[quadricorrelator]

i dont think that an eye for an eye is the way to go about things raybkk. that just (in my humble opinion) fuels things. i would rather just let this blow over, and i am sure that it will eventually do so.

i am not harassing him in any way. what do you mean by that? so what if i call him a small minded island boy? its the truth. how should i have put it? narrow minded? inexperienced? chauvanistic? take your pick. whatever you want to call it, is is simply inappropriate behaviour in a workplace.

Hi Donna,

I am sorry you have had to go through this experience. I have been picked on and I don't like it either.

Given your description, it seems difficult to know how your coworker will react, although it may die out as you have predicted.

He knows that he has experienced pain as a direct result of his misbehavior towards you. He may remember this and take it into account the next time he thinks about hurting you. So, the pain you inflicted on him, including loss of face, may be of benefit towards you. He may realize that he risks losing face or feeling humiliated again if he attacks you again.

I hope that you will "boil" a little bit less each day, so that eventually this incident does not occupy your mind and interfere with your enjoyment of your work and the rest of your life.

May I mention my view on "telling the truth" and harrassment? I understand this is a very emotional issue and you are boiling inside. I am not even sure it is appropriate for me to explain my view at this time. I apologize if my comments are disturbing to you, as I do not wish to cause any further problems for you.

I certainly feel that you have acted correctly.

I wanted to point out that the boy may be "small minded", from the islands, etc. He may even deserve a good thrashing. But, it may still be considered harrassment to tell a him these things if your goal is simply to cause pain.

I am not saying it would be bad to harrass him. I am saying that the truth of a statement doesn't preclude it from being harrassment.

I think it is harrassment if I repeatedly tell a person a truth they do not wish to hear for the purpose of causing emotional pain. For example, I do not like to be reminded about my many shortcomings. I might feel hurt when I am reminded of them, eventhough they are true.

In fact, the truth can be a very effective way of attacking and hurting someone. However it is risky because it seems to increase the likelyhood they will do the same to me.

I apologize if these comments were things you do not wish to hear or find disturbing.

I wish you the best, and hope this problem disappears for you.

-q

Edited July 16, 2006 by quadricorrelator

[donna]

i agree with you. as i said, an eye for an eye and all that is not the way to go.

i have no intention of expressing my views of him to his face. to do so is vindictive, and behaving in the same way he has done towards me.

this has not left any emotional scars or anything like that. im not making any assumptions about men, island boys, or thai people on this incident. to do so would be silly and small minded.

thanks for your kind words though.

[aaaaaa]

interesting topic.

thai mens attitudes to women is still jurassic!!!!!!

(tried to spell neanderthral)

anyway, i think it is a long way away before we see equal rights at the work place.

hopefully it will not get anywhere as bad as the US or UK. BUT DEFINATELY NEEDS SOME MAJOR ATTENTION

yes, that's the point: it is not only on the work place. it begins long way from work. although Thai women might disagree that, their rights not much better than, say, in Afganistan, Pakistan etc. - only urban middle class women (and may be also "hi so") can claim to have sifficient amancipation. otherwise position of woman in Thailand is in lower esteem than of man, if not openly subservient to him as in more radical societies.

here is one thing I've just found, which personally I would present to my spouse, who became indignant when I've mentioned in one conversation that in Thailand too there is "sexual slavery / human traffiking". she was almost outraged, saying that it exists only in "less developed neighbouring countries" as perhaps Myanmar, Cambodia, but definetely not in Thailand, not nowdays.

here is however latest if not most fresh report about it and I hope that this article would make her reconsider her opinion, especially because it is by Thai newpaper, although in English language:

Trapped

Trafficking is modern-day slavery. Humans are tricked or forced to go with the trafficker, then sold for profit. In Thailand alone, hundreds of thousands of women and children are trafficked to work as prostitutes. They are often deceived with promises of jobs as domestic helpers, waitresses or factory workers. Then, through intimidation, violence or confinement, they are forced to work as prostitutes.

According to the recent 2006 United Nations report on human trafficking, Thailand is the only country that ranks "very high" in the incidence of reporting in all three categories: as an origin, transit and destination country. These dire statistics paint a bleak picture to the rest of the world about how Thailand treats women.

But Thailand's top judicial personnel have been working with academics and non-governmental agencies to turn this picture around. Over three days of seminars in Ubon Ratchathani, judges, prosecutors and leading academics tackled the problem of trafficking and discussed in depth the human rights of trafficked women, as well as the gender-based causes of the crime.

Justice Vicha Mahakhun, president of the juvenile and family division of the Supreme Court, said: "The root of violence against women is power and gender relations. Society sees women and children as weak and therefore subordinate to men.

"Women and children have the same dignity as men and adults. Sexual violence is unacceptable because it contradicts the concept of equality of human beings. Women are equal to men by nature."

Khunying Chantanee Santabutr, a human-rights commissioner, explained the history of biased gender relations that led to current attitudes. "From the Ayutthaya period to King Rama IV [reigned 1851-1868], women were regarded as men's and their in-laws' property, so they could be sold, and polygamy was common. "While Thailand has certainly progressed since that period, an overwhelming number of women today are still sold or beaten as prostitutes and Thai husbands still engage mistresses and prostitutes.

"There are still flaws in Thai laws, especially in family law, that treat women as inferior."

In fact, the idea that men own their women is still written into law to this day: Article 276 states that a man who rapes a woman who is not his wife has committed a crime - wording which implies that it is acceptable to rape one's wife.

Sharlardchai Ramitanondh, of the Women's Studies Centre at Chiang Mai University, told the seminar that human trafficking was an outcome of globalisation.

"Globalisation causes poverty and a division between rich and poor countries. As a result, poor people have to migrate for better economic opportunities. Women are more severely affected by poverty. When they move to cities because they can no longer work in their villages, they are vulnerable to exploitation as prostituted women. Also, daughters are expected to sell their bodies to generate income for the family."

Justice Jaran Pukdithanakul, secretary-general to the president of the Supreme Court, added: "Because of poverty, there are more than one million people willing to sell their bodies for very little money. Compared to neighbouring countries, we consider ourselves more developed. But, on the other hand, we are less developed in terms of morality and allow trafficking and exploitation among human beings."

Thailand has yet to pass a comprehensive law to deal with trafficking and so must rely on related criminal laws to adjudicate cases. Ending the trafficking cycle will require enforcing the law and punishing traffickers. But prosecutions have failed because there was not adequate support and protection of victims, who are needed as witnesses. Also, victims are often treated as criminals for offences they were forced to commit and charged with crimes such as prostitution or illegal immigration. Assoc Prof Virada Somswasdi, president of the Foundation for Women, Law and Rural Development (FORWARD), feels there needs to be greater awareness of the gender-based causes of trafficking by the judicial system and a focus on punishing the traffickers, not the victims.

She said: "The protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking is the first tool created by the United Nations to counter the trade of women and children. Victims have received poor treatment because they are women, they are powerless, they are minorities and they come from underdeveloped countries. The fact that women are treated as sexual objects and as victims leads to trafficking."

.....

ghhhhh.... what a bold admitions made here ! I'm even surprised! how it is in conflict with "face" concept I bet !

however it is good to know that the efforts are being made, at least some people are aware of thsi and trying to do something about it - these 3 days seminars in Ubon Ratchathani last month were not so much made focus on in Thai media, with all the fuss about Thaksin's letter, King's anniversary and World cup. but at least Nation has palced it into "Special report" category !

so, let's hope that creating this awareness is already first step !