Workplace sexual harassment and retaliation
Unwelcome sexual conduct, coercive requests, sexual remarks, hostile environments and retaliation can occur in formal, informal, public, private, domestic-work and remote-work settings.
In this guide
What this can look like
Power may come from a manager, client, colleague, contractor, teacher, elected representative or person controlling shifts and references.
- Sexual messages, comments, touching, staring, pornography or demands for dates or sexual favours.
- Linking work, promotion, shifts, wages or references to compliance.
- Isolation, poor ratings, transfer, threats or gossip after rejection or complaint.
Why this is harmful
- Harassment can remove income, health, professional standing and equal access to work.
- Complaint systems can reproduce harm when they expose identity, delay action or punish the complainant.
Workplace duties and complaint routes
The 2013 workplace sexual-harassment Act creates prevention and redress duties and provides for Internal Committees and district Local Committees in their respective areas of jurisdiction.
Some acts may also fall under criminal law. SHe-Box is an official electronic complaint route.
Time limits, workplace coverage, committee jurisdiction and procedure matter. A portal submission does not guarantee interim protection, a finding or a remedy.
Safer next steps
Choose only what fits the situation. Safety, time, money, disability, family control and device monitoring can change what is possible.
Check immediate work safety
Consider a safer shift, workstation, reporting line, escort or remote arrangement without making her bear the cost of the misconduct.
Record the pattern if safe
Keep dates, words, witnesses, messages and work consequences outside employer-controlled systems when lawful and safe.
Compare routes
Ask for the committee policy and member details, consider the Local Committee or SHe-Box, and seek legal advice before choosing.
How to support someone
Protect her work and agency while offering practical support.
What can help
- Ask whether she wants a witness, note-taker or accompaniment.
- Help identify retaliation and preserve ordinary work records.
What to avoid
- Do not start an informal confrontation without consent.
- Do not call a complaint 'false' merely because evidence is incomplete.
Words you can use
“You deserve to work without sexual pressure.”
“Which route feels least risky to your job and safety?”
What families and institutions must do
Workplaces
Employers
- Maintain a law-compliant, trained and independent complaint system.
- Prevent retaliation, conflicts of interest, identity exposure and forced conciliation.
Government and public bodies
District and government authorities
- Keep Local Committees functional and discoverable.
- Publish accessible contact, process and outcome data without identifying complainants.
Get help and practical support
Open SHe-Box
Official electronic workplace sexual-harassment complaint route.
A complaint shares details with authorities; review device and retaliation risks before uploading.
Call legal-aid helpline 15100
Women and children are listed among people eligible for free legal services.
Eligibility does not guarantee a particular lawyer, remedy or result.
Call 112
For immediate danger, urgent police, fire or medical coordination.
Pan-India emergency service
A call or app request may share your number, voice and location with responders.
Sources and publication record
- Publication review
- Reviewed and approved by the project team
- Sources checked
- Jurisdiction
- India
- Review record
- Reviewed and approved by the project team. Official statutes and service sources are listed with the relevant content.
- Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013India Code, Legislative Department
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023India Code, Legislative Department
- SHe-Box workplace sexual-harassment complaint portalMinistry of Women and Child Development
- Free legal services and National Legal Aid Helpline 15100National Legal Services Authority
- Emergency Response Support System 112Ministry of Home Affairs