Understanding and Preventing Workplace Sexual Harassment
What is this course about?
Our Understanding and Preventing Workplace Sexual Harassment course has been developed with the aim of bringing forth a comprehensive understanding of sexual harassment at the workplace, as an issue both individual and institutional. We examine the many gender and sexuality-based inequalities and their interaction with other aspects of identity that may be marginalised.
In this course, we expand the definition of and approach towards sexual harassment at the workplace beyond a list of behavioural dos and don’ts. We delve into the invisible and complex dynamics at play at a workplace that give rise to as well as sustain a culture of impunity and silence around discrimination and harassment.
Further, the course equips learners to recognise the different ways in which sexual harassment may be perpetrated at the workplace and provides a practical know-how of rights. This will equip learners with the tools and resources to seek redress, support victims/survivors, and build a safe, inclusive, and affirming workplace.
Why a course on Understanding and Preventing Workplace Sexual Harassment
TARSHI developed this course to plug the holes in learners’ access to accurate information regarding workplace sexual harassment. Due to the sensitive and taboo nature of the topic, there is confusion and/or silence around issues like consent, sexual and gender identities, violence and abuse, disability, gender norms and roles, etc. In addition, there are gaps in awareness of anti-sexual harassment laws, guidelines and preventative practices. These topics are often not included in professional training courses in most Indian institutions. Our online course provides learners the resources to understand and address workplace sexual harassment from a rights-based perspective, and analyse it from an intersectional lens.
Our work around SISA spaces is crucial in the development of this course. SISA spaces are:
- Safe from judgment, policing, harassment and violence
- Inclusive of diverse identities and experiences (related to gender, sexuality, mental health, disability, class, caste, religion, marital status, and so on)
- Sexuality-Affirming, i.e. affirming of sexuality, and approach sexuality-related topics from a pleasure, choice- and rights-based perspective
A workplace may be a SISA space if it is free from sexual harassment, or actively addresses and prevents incidence of gender and sexuality-based discrimination and violence, as well as builds a safe and inclusive environment for individuals of diverse identities and experiences.
The course aligns with TARSHI’s goal of dissemination of information on sexuality, SRHR, and burnout prevention from a rights-based perspective, especially for young people, whom we hope to equip to make informed choices about their sexuality.
What are the objectives of the course?
- The course aims to explain sexual harassment at the workplace in an easily accessible, accurate and engaging way.
- The course discusses workplace sexual harassment as a complex institutional problem instead of simply an individually perpetrated issue, and broadens the scope of prevention beyond a list of dos and dont’s.
- The course presents a nuanced definition of sexual harassment at the workplace and views it from an intersectional lens.
- The course presents learners with information on the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013
Acknowledgements
This course was possible due to the efforts of many people, especially Nalini Sharma, Nidhi Chaudhary, Ramya Anand from TARSHI, and Vinita Saxena from Slow Made India. We thank Prabha Nagaraja from TARSHI for her enthusiasm, ideation, and reviews at all stages, and thank Anjali Hans for her tireless reviewing and making the language of the course simple and accessible. We would also like to thank Dipika Srivastava for her significant contribution during the initial stages of developing this course.
We thank the TARSHI team for their time and patience in testing the course and providing feedback and observations.
We would also like to thank our external reviewers for their feedback, observations, and for bringing in insights from their respective fields including academia, IT, law, activism/non-profits, the corporate world, and more.
Checking In
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1. Welcome to the course
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2. How to use
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3. Pre-course survey
Module I
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4. Welcome to Module I
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5. Objectives
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6. Chapter: What is sexual harassment?
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7. Glossary
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8. Defining sexual harassment at the workplace
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9. Sexual harassment and power
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10. Sexual harassment and power
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11. Takeaways
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12. Case study: Sexual harassment at the workplace – Impact
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13. Case study: Sexual harassment at the workplace – Impact
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14. Sexual harassment at the workplace – Impact
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15. Takeaways
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16. Chapter: How is sexual harassment invisible, yet prevalent?
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17. Barriers to reporting
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18. Debunking myths
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19. Listening to victims/survivors
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20. Takeaways
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21. Chapter: Identifying sexual harassment
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22. Case study: Types of sexual harassment
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23. Case study: Types of sexual harassment
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24. Case study: Types of sexual harassment
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25. Navigating ‘grey areas’
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26. Navigating ‘grey areas’
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27. Case study: Navigating ‘grey areas’
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28. Case study: Navigating ‘grey areas’
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29. Takeaways
Module II
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30. Welcome to Module II
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31. Objectives
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32. Chapter: Evolution of anti-sexual harassment legislation
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33. The Vishakha Guidelines
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34. Takeaways
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35. Case study: What constitutes sexual harassment?
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36. Case study: What constitutes sexual harassment?
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37. Case study: What constitutes sexual harassment?
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38. Case study: What constitutes sexual harassment?
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39. Case study: What constitutes sexual harassment?
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40. Employer duties
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41. Takeaways
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42. Values and work culture
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43. Takeaways
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44. Chapter: Anti-sexual harassment law and beyond
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45: ‘Where’, ‘when’ and ‘who’?
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46. Takeaways
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47. All about the IC
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48. All about the IC
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49. Case study: All about the IC
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50. Case study: All about the IC
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51. Takeaways
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52. How to file a complaint?
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53. Takeaways
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54. Timeline of an inquiry
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55. Timeline of an inquiry
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56. Takeaways
Checking Out
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57. Conclusion
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58. Additional resources
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59. Post-course survey
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60. Thank you
1. This course is for anyone who works in and/or has an interest in learning about Sexual Harassment in the Indian context. It requires a working knowledge of the English language and Internet access. The course is best viewed on a laptop or desktop screen.
2. It may be of particular interest to people working in non-governmental organisations, individuals/collectives working on issues around gender and sexuality, managers, HR professionals, teachers, college professors, and students.
3. The course can also be taken for the purpose of acquiring knowledge or as a refresher by Internal Committee members.
You do not require a background in gender and sexuality to take the course. The course is designed to benefit those who do not have a background or training in gender and sexuality.
Module 1 and Module 2 each may take between 1.5 to 2 hours to complete. The course is expected to take about 4 to 4.5 hours in all to complete.
A score will be generated after you complete each exercise. A minimum score of 75% in each exercise will make you eligible to move to the next exercise. You will be able to complete the course only after passing every exercise. After completing the course, you will receive a Certificate of Completion, and would have gained an understanding of sexual harassment at the workplace from the lens of gender, sexuality and other dimensions of inequality, and anti-sexual harassment laws and measures. Please note that the certificate alone does not qualify anyone to provide PoSH trainings.
No, this certificate alone does not qualify anyone to provide PoSH training.
The inaugural cost for the course is Rs. 750 (excluding GST) which is to be paid at the time of registration. One can access course material after paying the fees. This payment allows you to take the course once.
Yes, you may download ‘Takeaways’ from the exercises, ‘Glossary’ terms, and ‘Additional resources’ for later reference by clicking on the download icon on the top right hand corner of the course player.
Yes, you will be allowed to attempt an exercise more than once, if your score for the exercise is below 75%. You may view explanations for the exercise before reattempting it.
After submitting an exercise, the correct answer for each question will be highlighted and an explanation will be displayed above the highlighted answer(s).
If you have trouble logging in to your account after registering, write to us at mail@tarshi.net.
This is great course to understand more about sexual harassment at workplace. It is comprehensive, easy to follow as the examples are so real and we can resonate to them. The course also has some great takeaways that can be downloaded as additional reference documents, which I found really useful. Surely, a course that I can recommend to all. It is time to know more and stay vigilant at workplace and beyond.- Rekha Ahmed, Learning and Development professional
This is a highly informative and interactive course on understanding how sexual harassment at workplace is viewed in the Indian context and what are the lacunae that exist with regard to gender inclusivity. The course is simply worded and is in a format which is way more engaging than the plethora of other courses available online.- Nimisha Shukla, Law student
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