For some, the gym is a sanctuary – an oasis. For others, the gym can be a nightmare, and an emotionally draining experience. Sexual harassment in fitness facilities is a rapidly growing problem, and one that can leave a lot of gym members feeling uncomfortable and frightened. How do we combat this? Do we encourage people to switch gyms? Do we tell people to just “ignore” the harassment? What obligations do gym-owners have to address such conduct?
According to an article by Barbend.com, survey studies show that women specifically have experienced widespread harassment in various types of training facilities, perpetrated by fellow members, trainers, and staff. In the survey, women described methods of addressing the harassment that have been met with mixed results, from reporting harassment to management personnel to changing the clothing they wore to the gym. An important takeaway from the study was that out of the over 1300 women who responded to the survey, only 12.8% of respondents reported always feeling safe in a training environment. This means 87.2% report having felt unsafe at the gym: 4 out of every 5 women gym goers.
There are three harassment scenarios that we will address: (1) an employee harassing another employee; (2) an employee harassing a gym member; and (3) a gym member harassing another gym member.
So, what does that law have to say about the responsibilities of those supervising these facilities regarding...
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