⚖ The Advocate
Workplace & Labour Rights

That Is Just How Men Are in This Industry

A manager or colleague dismisses a sexual harassment complaint as normal workplace culture

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The Situation

What They Said

“You are being too sensitive. That is just how men are in this industry — learn to handle it.”
A manager, supervisor, or HR representative dismisses a complaint of sexual harassment by normalising the harasser's behaviour, attributing it to industry culture, and placing the responsibility on the complainant to adapt rather than on the harasser to stop or the employer to act.
The Fallacy

Normalisation / Appeal to Industry Culture

The response dismisses harassment by pointing to what 'everyone does' in the industry — as if cultural prevalence makes conduct lawful or acceptable. South African law defines sexual harassment as a form of unfair discrimination and a violation of dignity. The fact that harassment is common in an industry does not make it lawful — it makes the industry's compliance record a matter of concern. The complainant's sensitivity is irrelevant; the harasser's conduct is the legal issue.

What the Law Says

Your Legal Foundation

Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998
Section 6(3) — Sexual harassment as unfair discrimination
“Harassment of an employee is a form of unfair discrimination and is prohibited on any one, or a combination of grounds of unfair discrimination listed in subsection (1).”
Sexual harassment at work is unlawful under the EEA as a form of unfair discrimination on the ground of sex or gender. The employer has a legal duty to prevent and address harassment — failure to act on a complaint is itself a violation. You do not need to prove the harasser 'meant' to harass you; unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that affects your dignity or work environment is sufficient.
Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995
Section 187(1)(f) — Automatically unfair dismissal
“A dismissal is automatically unfair if the employer, in dismissing the employee, acts contrary to section 5 or, if the reason for the dismissal is that the employee refused to accept a demand made by the employer relating to any matter of mutual interest between employer and employee.”
If you are dismissed, demoted, or disadvantaged because you rejected sexual advances or because you reported harassment, this is automatically an unfair dismissal under Section 187 of the LRA. You do not have to prove it was unfair — the burden shifts to the employer to prove it was not related to your refusal or complaint.
What Scripture Says

God's Word on This

Genesis 39:9 (NET)
“There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?”
Joseph named sexual coercion as sin — not social inconvenience or misunderstood flirting — and refused it regardless of the power the person making the demand held over him. Scripture models the response: name it for what it is, refuse it clearly, and understand that God sees the injustice even when the employer does not. Dignity before God is not subject to what the industry normalises.
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What They'll Say Next

Common Counter-Arguments

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