No. A man cannot file a complaint as an “aggrieved woman” under the POSH Act.
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 specifically provides protection to an “aggrieved woman.” Section 9 of the Act provides the mechanism for an aggrieved woman to make a complaint of sexual harassment to the Internal Committee or Local Committee.
Therefore, the POSH Internal Committee is a statutory mechanism established under the POSH Act for complaints covered by the Act. It would therefore be legally inaccurate for an organisation to describe the POSH Act itself as a gender-neutral sexual harassment law.
No.
The fact that the POSH Act is not gender-neutral does not mean that an organisation should ignore a complaint of sexual harassment made by a male employee.
Employers can establish a gender-neutral workplace harassment policy that operates separately from the statutory POSH framework.
Such a policy can provide employees of all genders with a mechanism to report:
- Sexual harassment
- Sexually inappropriate behaviour
- Unwanted sexual comments or advances
- Sexually explicit messages or communications
- Unwanted physical contact
- Sexual jokes or remarks
- Other forms of sexually inappropriate workplace conduct
The organisation can then deal with such complaints under its internal disciplinary, grievance or workplace conduct framework.
For organisations in Mumbai, it is useful to clearly distinguish between these two mechanisms.
| POSH Act |
Gender-Neutral Workplace Policy |
| Statutory legislation |
Internal organisational policy |
| Specifically protects women covered by the Act |
Can provide protection to employees of all genders |
| Complaint made by an aggrieved woman |
Can receive complaints from employees outside the POSH framework |
| Handled through the statutory Internal Committee / Local Committee mechanism as applicable |
Can be handled through a separate disciplinary/grievance committee |
| Governed by the POSH Act |
Governed by organisational policy, employment terms and applicable disciplinary rules |
| Statutory POSH inquiry procedure applies |
Organisation's prescribed investigation and disciplinary procedure applies |
This distinction should be clearly explained in the organisation's POSH Policy, Employee Handbook, Code of Conduct and workplace grievance framework.
Organisations may establish a separate independent disciplinary or workplace grievance committee to address complaints that fall outside the POSH Act, including complaints of sexual harassment made by male employees.
However, this should be understood correctly:
The POSH Act does not itself mandate a separate committee for male complainants. Rather, the organisation can create such a mechanism through its internal policy and disciplinary framework.
The committee may be designated as a:
- Workplace Harassment Committee
- Gender-Neutral Grievance Committee
- Employee Grievance Committee
- Disciplinary Committee
- Workplace Conduct Committee
The organisation should clearly specify the committee's role, authority, investigation procedure and disciplinary powers.
Mumbai has a diverse workforce comprising employees working across corporate offices, factories, IT companies, start-ups, retail organisations, professional services firms and other establishments.
A workplace harassment policy that provides a reporting mechanism for employees of all genders can help organisations:
1 Provide a clear reporting mechanism
Employees should know where they can report inappropriate workplace conduct, even when their complaint does not fall within the statutory POSH framework.
2 Prevent gender stereotypes
Male employees may hesitate to report sexual harassment because of social perceptions that men cannot be victims of sexual harassment. A gender-neutral policy can address this gap.
3 Maintain a fair investigation process
Complaints should be assessed objectively, with both the complainant and respondent being given a fair opportunity to present their respective cases.
4 Protect confidentiality
Workplace harassment complaints should be handled confidentially and information should be shared only with persons who have a legitimate need to know.
5 Prevent retaliation
Employees who report workplace misconduct should not face retaliation, victimisation or adverse treatment for making a complaint in good faith.
Consider a hypothetical situation.
A male employee working in a corporate office in BKC, Andheri, Lower Parel or Powai alleges that a colleague repeatedly sends sexually explicit messages, makes unwanted sexual comments and engages in unwanted physical contact.
The employee cannot approach the POSH Internal Committee as an “aggrieved woman” under the POSH Act.
However, if the organisation has a gender-neutral workplace harassment policy, he can submit his complaint through the mechanism prescribed under that policy.
The designated disciplinary or grievance committee can examine the complaint, review relevant evidence, hear both parties and arrive at appropriate findings under the organisation's applicable policy and disciplinary framework. If the allegations of misconduct are established, the organisation can take appropriate disciplinary action in accordance with its applicable rules and policies.
A well-drafted gender-neutral workplace harassment policy should clearly address:
- Who can make a complaint
- What constitutes sexual harassment and inappropriate sexual conduct
- Who will receive the complaint
- Time limits, if any
- Investigation procedure
- Constitution and role of the committee
- Confidentiality
- Protection against retaliation
- Rights of the complainant
- Rights of the respondent
- Principles of natural justice
- Documentation and evidence
- Disciplinary consequences
- Appeal or review mechanism
The policy should also clearly state that the gender-neutral mechanism is separate from the statutory POSH mechanism.
Organisations should also be careful when dealing with allegations of false or malicious complaints.
- A complaint should not automatically be treated as false merely because it cannot be proved.
- Similarly, an employee should not be presumed guilty merely because a complaint has been made.
- The organisation should conduct a fair and impartial process before arriving at findings.
Where a complaint is established to have been deliberately false or malicious, appropriate action may be considered in accordance with the applicable law, service rules and organisational disciplinary policy.
This distinction is particularly important because “unsubstantiated” does not automatically mean “false.”
Companies in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Thane should consider reviewing their existing workplace policies to ensure that there is clarity between:
POSH Compliance (For complaints covered by the POSH Act):
Aggrieved Woman
→
Internal Committee
→
POSH Act procedure
Gender-Neutral Workplace Harassment Mechanism (For complaints outside POSH framework):
Employee
→
Gender-Neutral Mechanism
→
Disciplinary/Grievance Committee
→
Internal disciplinary procedure
This approach allows an organisation to maintain compliance with the POSH Act while also establishing a broader workplace framework for addressing sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct involving employees of all genders.
