Sexual harassment plaints at Nifty companies hit a record

ET Intelligence Group: The Nifty 50 companies have disclosed receiving a cumulative 741 complaints of sexual harassment in their annual reports for the fiscal year 2019. These are the highest number of cases reported annually since FY15, the year from when it became compulsory for companies to make such a disclosure.

Experts attribute this surge in complaints to an increase in awareness, the MeToo movement, impact of mandatory training and companies realising the reputational risk involved.

Analysis by the ET Intelligence Group revealed that the number of cases jumped 14 per cent on-year in FY19 as compared to 3 per cent in FY18. Complaints have grown at a compounded annual growth rate of 15 per cent in the past five fiscal years.

IT and banking companies, the biggest employers of women, have traditionally been the top recipients of such complaints. At 142 reported cases, IT giant Wipro topped the list, followed by Infosys (105 ) and Tata Consultancy Services (87). According to a Wipro spokesperson, the number of harassment complaints in the company of 170,000 employees reflected increasing awareness as well as greater conviction in the organisation’s process to be able to address these concerns. The robustness of the system allows employees to share their concerns confidentially, assured of a fair and just hearing, and without fear of retribution. Each case has its own context, and is addressed with full due diligence, confidentiality, neutrality, sensitivity and after assuring the employee of a safe workplace, the spokesperson said.

Banks are the next set of companies to report double-digit complaints. ICICI Bank tops the list with 59 complaints, followed by Axis Bank (51), Kotak Mahindra Bank (27), State Bank of India (26) and HDFC Bank (25).

Five Nifty companies — Bajaj Auto, Bajaj Finance, Grasim Industries, JSW Steel and UltraTech — have reported receiving harassment complaints for the first time in the past five years.

JSW Group’s spokesperson clarified that “the single complaint reported was found as not an act of sexual harassment but other grievance by the company’s internal complaints committee and was disposed of as such”. “However, it reflects the confidence of our woman employees in JSW Group’s policies and practices to create a safe work environment as well as enabling them to speak-up,” he added. The company undertook several initiatives including deployment of e-learning modules and forum theatre techniques to maximise awareness and highlight various nuances of sexual harassment.


“The biggest thing has been the Me-Too movement that has led to general increase in awareness about sexual harassment,” said Vishal Kedia, founder of compliance advisory firm Complykaro Services. “Organisations that were hesitant earlier have shed their hesitation. Companies realise that there is a reputational risk attached to this and it is no longer something that can be ignored. Several instances of not handling cases properly have led to negative consequences for companies. As a result, the companies are getting skilled people on the board to undertake sensitisation programmes,” Kedia added. According to him, even small companies are now aware and willing to invest in sensitisation programmes.

Among manufacturing firms, Tata Steel reported the highest number of complaints at 20, followed by Dr Reddy’s Laboratories at 16. “We have strengthened our prevention of sexual harassment training, by holding small group sessions for our woman employees with a strong focus concentrating on assuring them of non-retaliation and confidentiality regarding complaints, thereby encouraging women to speak up without fear,” said a Dr Reddy’s spokesperson, adding, “In addition to the online training module, we have conducted a series of floor walks and in-person classroom sessions.”

From 21 firms receiving no harassment complaints in FY15, the number has dropped to eight in FY19.

“There is an uptick in demand for year-round communication — with companies wanting to maintain a steady flow of communication,” said Bhumija Saxena, a partner at Integrity Matters, a firm that provides POSH [Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act] training modules to companies. “Men have become wary of working with woman colleagues — an aspect companies are finding difficult to tackle. Companies want the training modules to be gender-neutral and depicting a balanced approach that negates the extremes of not hiring women on one hand and harassing them in any sort on the other,” she added.

According to SC lawyer Nidhi Mathur, increased awareness, stringent regulations, mandatory training, elaborate investigation and zero tolerance policy followed by companies have led to increased complaints over the years. “Young girls have become more confident now to speak up.”