Dear Suhas,
There are two types of harassment, sexual and non-sexual. While the former is generally restricted to the women employees the latter can be for men and women both. If the employee suffers harassment at the hands of the seniors then the aggrieved employee may put up the application for the redressal of grievance. In the application, he/she may write what happened, where it happened, what kind of abusive or insulting language was used, when it was used, who were the witnesses etc.
The application may be addressed directly to the MD of the company, however, hand over the hard copy to the HR Department. Ensure that the HR representative acknowledges the receipt on the second copy of the application. If the HR personnel refuses to accept the application then it may be sent by Speed Post with acknowledgement due. Please do not send the application by email. All the communication must be done through hard copy only.
On receipt of the application, the management is expected to order the enquiry. If no enquiry is ordered or if no action is taken then, the aggrieved employee may send the reminder after 8-10 days. If no action is taken on the employee even after the reminder is sent then the employee is free to approach the labour office of his/her city. If the verbal abuse is of extreme in nature then the woman employee may file a complaint to the office of the National Commission for Women (NCW). However, the office of the NCW may not take a deep interest as generally, they focus on crimes against women who are tormented physically or sexually. Therefore, the woman employee has to pursue her case in the office of NCW. If the woman employee ensures that NCW sends the notice to the management then it will have far more weight. If the NCW is supportive then they help the woman employee to file an FIR against the accused or even against management for protecting the accused.
While I have written the general procedure, it is crucial to generate irrefutable evidence in the form of audio or video. I say so because there is a possibility of witnesses turning hostile and thereby collapsing the case. Therefore, an aggrieved employee has to do a lot of spadework before putting up the application. No need to submit evidence along with the application. The aggrieved employee can tell that the evidence will be provided during the enquiry.
Notwithstanding whatever I have written, the woman employee should muster the courage to do all the above. Sometimes the bravado shown at the beginning fizzles out as the time passes. Secondly, while doing all this, the woman employee may lose her peace of mind. Therefore, let the woman employee keep in mind that it will be a test of her tenacity and should not buckle under the pressure. If the woman employee gives up the fight in between, it will embolden the management further.
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar