INTERVIEW EDGE • OCT 1992

Women Take Action

Women in the workplace are no longer ignoring the blatant harassment and discrimination that has plagued some of the largest and most prestigious organizations in the country.

In a recent and highly publicized scandal, sexual harassment charges against the Navy Tailhook Association resulted in two Navy admirals losing their jobs and a third being reassigned. Add to this the earlier resignation of the Secretary of the Navy and it is obvious that considerable damage has been done to the Navy's reputation.

But buried under the resignations and investigations are attitudes that haven't changed. In a recent conversation I had with a retired naval aviator, he commented about the women making accusations against the Navy, "What were those women doing on the third floor of the hotel?" In other words, blame the victim. It is this kind of thinking the Navy must change to regain its credibility.

On the corporate side, Lucky Stores recently lost a discrimination law suit filed by female employees. The chain is now revamping their hiring and promotion procedures to include training programs aimed at promoting more women to management jobs. They are also setting goals for promoting a disproportionate number of women to make up for the alleged discrimination in the past.

In addition, Lucky still faces a request for $155 million in back pay and lost earnings filed by 20,000 current and former female employees of the chain.

When will managers wake up?