What Can I Do If I Witness Or Experience Sexual Harassment When on Placement?
What can I do if I witness or experience sexual harassment when on placement?
A Guide for Youth Work students
Why this guide?
Youth work students have reported experiencing and witnessing sexual harassment when on placement. Sexual harassment has been perpetrated by agency supervisors, other workers and young people.
RMIT takes sexual harassment seriously. Sexual harassment is against the law and you have the right to be safe and free of sexual harassment when on placement.
This guide aims to assist you if you think you have been sexually harassed or witness sexual harassment when on placement.
It is online so you can access it whenever you choose.
What is sexual harassment?
The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (2009) defines sexual harassment as;
‘Sexual harassment is conduct of a sexual nature that is unwelcome. Sexual harassment can be physical, verbal or written. It involves behaviour that could reasonably be expected to make a person feel offended, humiliated or intimidated. Sexual harassment is against the law.
Sexual harassment can involve:
- an unwelcome sexual advance
- a request for sexual favours
- unwelcome comments about a person's sex life or physical appearance
- suggestive behaviour such as leering and ogling
- unnecessary physical intimacy such as brushing up against a person
- sexually offensive comments, anecdotes or jokes
- displaying sexually offensive visuals (such as photos, pinups or calendars), reading matter or objects
- sexual propositions or continued requests for dates
- physical contact such as touching or fondling
- indecent assault or rape (also criminal offences).’
Examples of sexual harassment
Youth work students are required to write online journals when on placement. Some students have used the journals to report their experiences of sexual harassment. Examples include:
- workers and young people speaking about their sex lives
- workers and young people making sexually offensive comments
- workers ogling young people
- workers inappropriately commenting on service user’s physical appearance
- young people harassing students to go out on dates and provide their contact details
What is not sexual harassment?
Sexual harassment is not behavior which is based on mutual attraction, friendship and respect. If the interaction is consensual, welcome and reciprocated it is not sexual harassment.
The relationships between youth work students who on placement and agency supervisor, other workers and young people are such that behavior of a sexual nature is most likely to be unwelcome, and breach the ethical and legal boundaries of such relationships.
Options for dealing with sexual harassment when on placement and where to make a complaint, get help and advice
If you think you are being sexual harassed you can do one or more of the following. We appreciate students could feel more safe, comfortable and confident doing some of the options compared to others, and what you do is your choice.
You should expect request for advice about sexual harassment and complaints of sexual harassment to be treated in a confidential, timely and fair manner.
You also might want to talk through these options as well as some time to think through what to do, this is ok and you can seek advice to talk through what you might choose to do.
- You can deal with the behavior yourself. You have every right to approach the other party and ask them to stop the offending behavior
- You can speak with your agency supervisor or another team leader or manager in the organisation. The agency where you are doing placement should have a sexual harassment policy and procedures to follow in order to remedy sexual harassment and deal with complaints.
- You can contact your university tutor or the youth work field education coordinator
- You can call RMIT counseling service on 9925 4365
- You can contact RMIT student legal services on 9925 2078
- You can contact the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission 9281 7111
- You can call the Centre Against Sexual Assault (CASA) 9344 2210
- In the case of sexual assault you can contact the Victoria Police 000
- RMIT Prevention of Assault
- Other relevant RMIT policies
- Sexual Harassment policy
- Anti-Racism and Religious Tolerance policy
- Bullying and Occupational Violence policy
- Equal Employment Opportunity policy
- In the case of unresolved or poorly handled complaints you can contact the RMIT Ombuds 9925 2930
To tell or not to tell
You might be thinking about whether or not to seek advice or make a complaint. There can be many reasons why youth work student won’t raise the harassment with their agency supervisor or other workers in the workplace. Reasons include; they don’t think it is serious enough, they think it is their fault, they fear negative repercussions, they think it won’t be taken seriously; they don’t want to be labelled a ‘trouble-maker’, or it could be the agency supervisor who is the offender.
The RMIT field education staff recognise students could be feeling confused, isolated and distressed, and can talk with you about it. You will not be pressured to raise it with your agency supervisor if you don’t want to, this is your decision.
Self care and support
Experiencing or witnessing sexual harassment can be stressful, and can lead to feelings of guilt, self-blame, fear and distress. If you are being sexually harassed it is important to take care of yourself and seek support if needed.
You might talk with your peers, family, partners and friends and they might be helpful supports. At the same time it can be distressing for others to hear someone close to them and who they care about is being sexually harassed, and that it might have a negative impact on relationships with significant others.
Other supports you can call upon at this time include:
- RMIT student counseling service 9925 4365
- Lifeline 131114
- Women’s Information Referral Line 1300 134 130
- Mensline 1300 789 978
You can also reflect on what is happening in an online field ed journal.
References and further information
RMIT University 2007 Policy: Sexual; harassment, RMIT University, Melbourne
RMIT Prevention of Assault
Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (2009) When is harassment against the law, Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, accessed 23.9.09, <