Sexual harassment in the workplace is a prohibited practice in labor relations in Vietnam. Workers need to know what behaviors are considered sexual harassment to protect themselves and their rights.
Article table of contents
1. What is sexual harassment in the workplace?
Sexual harassment in the workplace is the sexual conduct of any person towards another person in the workplace that is not desired or accepted by that person. To be specific:
Workplaces means any place where an employee actually works as agreed or assigned by the employer in Vietnam, including work-related places or spaces such as social activities, seminars, trainings, official business trips, meals, telephone conversations, electronic communication activities, transportation arranged by the employer from the place of residence to the place of work and vice versa, accommodation provided by the employer and other places specified by the employer.
2. Forms of Sexual Harassment in Vietnam
Prescribed sexual harassment may occur in the form of:
- Exchange such offers, requests, suggestions, threats, coercion to exchange sexual relations for any benefits related to work;
- Acts of a sexual nature are not intended to be exchanged, but make the working environment uncomfortable and unsafe, causing physical and mental harm, work performance and life of the harassed person.
3. What types of sexual harassment in the workplace include in Vietnam?
Sexual harassment in the workplace includes:
- Physical behavior includes actions, gestures, contacts, impacts on the body of a sexual nature or sexual cues;
- Verbal sexual harassment includes direct verbal, telephone or via electronic means with sexual content or sexual implication;
- Non-verbal sexual harassment includes body language; display and depiction of visual material about sex or related to sexual activity directly or via electronic means.
(Clause 9, Article 3 of the Labor Code 2019, Article 84 of Decree 145/2020/ND-CP)
- Key word:
- sexual harassment at work in Vietnam
