Online Sexual Harassment: Does it even exist under WA law?

Alison Adam's chapter on Cyberstalking under this weeks readings raised an interesting point about how increased use of the internet has broadened the playing field where men can sexually harass women. There are many examples of women in the workforce who feel uncomfortable or upset about sexually harassing emails received by male collegues. I agree with Adam's assertion that the use of email within the workforce has provided men with yet another means of exploiting women in a suitably discreet manner so as not to attract litigation suits.

My question is why doesn't the West Australian Equal Oppotunity Act acknowledge the increasing presence of online sexual harassment? Under WA law, S 24 of the Equal Opportunity Act 1984 only provides avenues for sexual harassment claims within the context of employment, education or accommodation. There is no explicit mention of cyberspace or online harassment. This makes it extremely difficult for victims of online harassment to make any realistic legal claims. Further from this, in order to prove a case of sexual harassment, a victim must prove that they have suffered a 'reasonable disadvantage' as a result of the harassment. The law is extremely uncertain as to what constitutes a 'reasonable disadvantage'. Would shame, humiliation or simply feeling upset constitute disadvantage? By imposing a 'reasonableness based test' I feel the law is skimming over the clear gendered nature of online sexual harassment. The test should be whether the victim has suffered in the context of the victim most likely being a female.

Adam's states on p 215 '..the victims clearly felt unhappy about the level of protection that the law currently affords them...Only when we have a better understanding of why the behaviour occurs can we then begin to think about policy measures which may be effective'. My view is that the WA laws on sexual harassment will never be satisfactory unless there is explicit recognition of cyber online sexual harassment.