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Government tightening rules on workplace sexual harassment and raising compensation payments
Ben Hamilton
September 7th, 2018
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This article is more than 6 years old.
Minister wants the wording of the legislation to be clearer
“They didn’t say no” is no longer considered an adequate defence in Danish rape cases (photo: Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Alpha Stock Images)
The government is preparing a new bill that will raise the average amount of compensation paid out in workplace sexual harassment cases by around 30 percent, as well as ironing out some of the rules.
“There are too many different types of sexual harassment, so we want to make it easier to understand the law and help those who may suffer sexual harassment,” Troels Lund Poulsen, the minister for employment, explained to Politiken.
The bill reflects the government’s desire to discourage lewd conversation and activity. It is a fact that male-dominated workplaces can be difficult for women, but the environment and ‘lad culture’ should not be considered an excuse for sexual harassment in future judgments.
Not what I meant when I said “Say Cheese”
Presently, one half of all complaints are rejected, while a further third result in the dismissal of a worker in a supervisory role.
Two recent examples of cases that were thrown out were: a ‘manager’ popping out his penis while a female colleague was taking a photo, and police officers watching pornography on their phones in the company of a female colleague.
The average amount paid out will be raised from 25,000 to 33,000 under the terms of the new bill, which has the support of Dansk Folkeparti and Socialdemokratiet, although the latter would like to see the amount raised further.
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