It happens all the time.
The sun rises and falls and women are sexually harassed at the Oklahoma State Capitol.
“About 50 percent of women can expect to be sexually harassed at some point during their working career,” OU Professor of Management Mark Bolino told NewsOn6.com. “I think the fear of retaliation is the No. 1 issue.”
The news channel submitted a freedom of information (FOI) request on Oklahoma House sexual harassment claims dating back to 2010.
But lawmakers exempted themselves from the open records act requirements, according to NewsOn6.com.
A recent House Rules Committee investigation into harassment claims made against two House members resulted, in part, in a recommendation of mandatory sensitivity training.
All House employees already receive clear guidelines defining harassment and how to report it as part of their job training.
However, the news station reports that the language is absent from handbooks that legislative assistants receive.
And the world goes ’round.
In recent weeks, Oklahoma House Speaker Charles McCall has repeatedly emphasized his no-tolerance stance against sexual harassment and that he takes complaints seriously.
An unidentified legislative assistant told NewsOn6.com, “If you can’t understand that leaving a note on your assistant’s desk that says ‘I couldn’t stop staring at your boobs today,’ if you’re not sure if that’s inappropriate or not, I think you have a real misunderstanding about what sexual harassment is.”
So ends another day at the Oklahoma State Capitol.
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