The CIA is calling its new stance on sexual harassment a “zero tolerance” policy. Last month David Petraeus, the CIA director, ordered a team of managers, investigators and counselors to war zone stations to address sexual harassment issues. This move comes on the heels of surveys, completed in 2007 and 2011; that reveal no improvement has been made regarding allegations of sexual harassment in the CIA ranks, particularly in the foreign stations.
Apparently, certain stations are infamous for stories of sexual impropriety. Former CIA officers attribute the occurrences to long work hours, the high levels of stress due to the war zone conditions, close living quarters and consumption of alcohol after the workday to relieve the stress. While that combination of elements certainly explains why harassment conduct could occur, it does not justify years of inaction.
The CIA spokesperson, Preston Golson, indicated that most of the allegations stemmed from comments or jokes of a sexual nature, but kept the overall statistics confidential. He also indicated that occurrences of physical harassment were suggested by the study but these were not reported up the chain of command by the victims.
Highlighting the issue, Ilana Sara Greenstein, a former CIA case officer, stated that a supervisor, who was in charge of her promotions, harassed her while she was stationed in Iraq. When she said no to his aggressive come on, it put her in an awkward position. She didn’t file a complaint because she claims that would have been the end of her career. “It’s an old boys’ network, and that kind of comes with the territory” she said.
Sexual harassment can consist of unwelcome comments about one’s sex, sexual advances or requests for sexual favors. It can also be physical harassment of a sexual nature. Generally speaking one isolated comment will not suffice to break the law. But when the comments or incidents are frequent or severe enough to create a hostile work environment, the conduct can be actionable. Likewise, if the harassment is done by a supervisor and culminates in an adverse employment decision, it is illegal. A sexual harassment lawyer in California can help you determine whether you should file a claim.
Golson stated that some officials have been disciplined in recent years for sexual harassment, but the CIA has largely kept the details mum, citing their policy of keeping personnel information confidential.
Former CIA officers did reveal the opinion that the CIA was more tolerant of workplace sexual impropriety than corporations and that trysts between supervisors and employees were not unusual. Accordingly, Petraeus’ efforts to crack down on the behavior and put in a mechanism for addressing any incidents should be applauded.
If you or anyone you know is being harassed in the workplace, consult a sexual harassment lawyer in California for help.