Does Your Ability (Or Lack Of) Make It Not Sexual Harassment
Two posts on Jack Neo’s possible sexual harassing of potential stars.
We should educate both men and women that such behaviour is wrong and unacceptable, and ensure victims do not suffer in silence. It is especially pertinent when positions of authority and power are abused, and no one can deny that Jack Neo is influential in the entertainment circle.
Corinna Lim, AWARE’s Executive Director:
Some of the women involved reported that Mr. Neo used the carrot of career promotions to get to know them. This is a classic form of sexual harassment known as “Quid Pro Quo” harassment, characterised by an authority figure offering a subordinate career benefits (for instance “a bigger role”) in exchange for sexual favours.
It is not uncommon for a pattern of sexual harassment to go undetected for a long time. Many cases go unreported because victims feel isolated, blame themselves or simply because they are unsure that they have been victimised.
One thought.
If I wanted to buy a camera, and my budget was $1000, and the salesman was trying to sell me a camera that I valued only at $800, he or she might provide me with free accessories (e.g. flash, camera bag, tripod) of total value $200, to get me to part with my $1000.
If you were an actress with mediocre acting abilities and average looks, and I knew that by all fair assessment, you would never make it big in the entertainment industry and the best role you could possibly get was a hawker lady in my next movie. The value of you as an extra is positive $200. The value of you as a lead is negative $1000 because of the opportunity cost incurred in NOT casting a better known actress. However, if i value the chance to have sexual intercourse with you at $1200, then if you agree to sleep with me and I cast you as a lead, I’m back at positive $200 in terms of total value to me.
Is this sexual harassment if I try to establish this arrangement with you?
Is there a difference between:
1. Giving you a better job beyond your abilities if you are willing to sleep with me.
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2. As long as you are not willing to sleep with me, you get jobs that are beneath your abilities.
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3. If you aren’t willing to sleep with me, I will give you a job that matches your abilities.
I’m trying to think of some set of equations to express the above statements that might constrain the boundaries of sexual harassment.
What is Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment:
It occurs when (1) job benefits, including employment, promotion, salary increases, shift or work assignments, performance expectations and other conditions of employment, are made contingent on the provision of sexual favors, usually to an employer, supervisor or agent of the employer who has the authority to make decisions about employment actions, or (2) the rejection of a sexual advance or request for sexual favors results in a tangible employment detriment, a loss of a job benefit of the kind described above.