The Journal of Economic Perspectives · 2003 · 91 citations · 21 references
LawEconomicsLabor LawIndustrial RelationsLabor EconomicsLabor PolicyGender DiscriminationHarassment LawLabour EnforcementSex DiscriminationSexual HarassmentSexual Harassment LawInterpersonal ExchangeLegislative ProhibitionsSexual Harassment At WorkWorkplace Harassment RulesWorkplace Sexual CoercionWorkplace Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment is pervasive in some firms, yet both employers and employees may perceive a mutual benefit from such conduct. The paper asks whether government should ban workplace sexual harassment and builds an argument for legislative intervention. An economic framework is applied to labor market practices to assess and critique existing sexual‑harassment laws in the U.S.
Suppose a firm has a widespread reputation for sexually harassing its employees. When a person signs up to work for such a firm, it would appear that both the firm and the worker are better off by virtue of the ‘exchange’. Is there a case then for government to ban sexual harassment in the workplace? Starting from this question, this paper constructs an argument for legislative intervention. This ‘economic approach’ is applied to other labor market practices and is used to evaluate and critique the current law concerning sexual harassment in the U.S. and other nations.
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