Sexual harassment victim can take three months' leave

A woman employee who has faced sexual harassment at the workplace can take leave up to three months during the pendency of the inquiry into the complaint, the government said on Thursday.

This special leave is in addition to the leave she is otherwise entitled to. “The leave so granted to the aggrieved woman under this rule shall not be debited against the leave account,” the latest office memorandum said.

The Department of Personnel and Training has issued the office memorandum to announce the insertion of the new rule on the special leave connected with inquiry on sexual harassment in the Central Civil Services (Leave) Rules, 1972.

“Leave up to a maximum of 90 days may be granted to an aggrieved female government servant on the recommendation of the internal committee or local committee, as the case may be, during the pendency of inquiry under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013,” the rule said.

A senior official said this would give the victim time to come to terms with the trauma following the incident. It will also give the employee an option not to encounter the accused in office. Earlier the problem  was that the employee had to take leave if she wanted to skip office after filing the complaint.

The official said this is part of the pro-women initiatives of the government. “We need to help them come out of the trauma. Such initiatives will send a message to women employees that the government is serious and they need not fear anything,” the official added.