The Israel Women's Network is working in several ways to improve enforcement of the Law Agains Sexual Harassment in the employment setting. First, our attorneys file lawsuits that have the potential to set important new precedents with respect to interpretation of the Law. Second, IWN has undertaken an "Implementation Project" to raise awareness about the Law's provisions and encourage people to implement the Law in all workplaces. Third, IWN gives legal advice about the Law via our Hotline .

I. Lawsuits

The Israel Women's Network is currently involved in two lawsuits concerning implementation of the Sexual Harassment Law. In addition, a lawsuit concluded in 2001 resulted in several important precedents.

a. Suspension Pending Criminal Proceedings. The Israel Women's Network filed a petition with the High Court of Justice, requesting to be joined to the action filed by the parents' committee of the city of Ma'ale Adumim. The Director of the Ma'ale Adumim Department of Education is accused of sexual harassment and committing indecent acts against a school principal and a department employee. Criminal proceedings against the accused were commenced. However, the city continued to employ the accused as the Director of the Department of Education. The city's parents' committee filed a petition to the High Court of Justice , requesting an injunction ordering the city to suspend the accused from his position pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings. IWN joined in the petition. The petition claims that the refusal to suspend a senior employee against whom criminal charges for sexual harassment have been filed results in harm to the female employees who filed the complaint and exposes them to the offender after they have lodged the complaint, which in certain cases can interfere with their work.

In December 2001, the accused suspended himself voluntarily with the consent of the city. The High Court of Justice issued its decision in May 2002, in which it gave legal effect to this suspension of the accused. This landmark decision marks the first time in which the High Court of Justice gave legal effect as part of its decision to an employee's voluntary suspension from his employment, pending the outcome of criminal charges of sexual harassment.

b. Pending Harassment Suit Against Local Municipality and Municipal Employee. The IWN is representing a plaintiff in a suit against a local municipality and one of its employees for alleged sexual harassment in the workplace. The suit claims that the workplace is also liable for not fulfilling their duties as written in the Law.

c. Precedent-Setting Case Under the Equal Opportunity Law. In a precedent-setting case before the labor court of Beersheba, the IWN represented two plaintiffs in a sexual harassment case against a workplace harasser and his employer. The suit was handled by the former head of the IWN legal department, Adv. Esther Sivan, and Adv. Itzak Ya'ari of Yigal Arnon & Co. The labor court's opinion sets three important precedents. First, the court held that the fact that the police had closed the criminal investigation against the harasser due to a "lack of public interest" is not relevant with respect to the issue in a civil lawsuit as to whether the harassment occurred. Second, the court held that it was not relevant that the Sexual Harassment Law had not been enacted at the time the incidents occurred. Instead, the court ruled that the standards of behavior as to what is prohibited sexual harassment were already in place and were prohibited under the Equal Opportunity Law. Third, the court held that both the man who harassed the plaintiffs as well as the company that employed him were liable for the payment of damages to the plaintiffs.

The legal department of the Israel Women's Network continues to examine cases brought to its attention, primarily by callers to the Hotline, to find other cases that can set important precedents to improve implementation of the Sexual Harassment Law.

II. Implementation Project

The Israel Women's Network has undertaken an "Implementation Project" which focuses on raising awareness about the Law's provisions and encouraging people to implement the Law in all workplaces. Currentlu, the Implementation Project focuses on local municipalities.

During the spring of 2002, the IWN legal department wrote 130 letters to the heads of all of Israel's local municipalities. The letters requested information about the implementation of the Sexual Harassment Law. IWN requested details such as (a) whether there have been any complaints filed about sexual harassment and if so, how they were handled, (b) the name of the person responsible for handling sexual harassment complaints; (c) whether any training courses had been provided for the person responsible for sexual harassment and for the employees; (d) whether the municipality had posted or distributed a code of practice, etc.

IWN is evaluating the number of responses and the information provided, in order to be able to continue its campaign for full implementation of the Sexual Harassment Law.

III. Hotline.

The IWN legal department operates a free Hotline which callers may contact three afternoons per week with any questions related to their legal rights in the workplace. Callers receive free legal advice about cases of sexual harassment at work.

The Israel Women's Network explains the provisions of the Law and helps callers in various ways. Some callers are provided with sample letters that they can use to inform their employers about the sexual harassment at work and to demand that the employer fulfill its obligations under the Law to conduct and investigation and take actions to remedy the problem. Callers who have been subjected to traumatic sexual harassment are provided with information about the hotline for victims of sexual assault and the Sexual Assault Victims Witness Assistance Project. In precedent-setting cases, callers are provided with direct legal assistance, such as by means of legal representation in a civil lawsuit.

IV. Amendments to Improve the Law

The IWN legal staff closely monitors implementation of the Sexual Harassment Law in order to determine which amendments could improve its effectiveness. Lawyers involved in the IWN Legal Forum also are involved in this process.

In November 2001, the legal department of the Israel Women's Network held a meeting of its bi-monthly Lawyers' Forum, which focused on ways to improve implementation of the Sexual Harassment Law. Over thirty lawyers participated in the program.

The participants included lawyers who work in government offices as advisers and prosecutors, a lawyer who had served as the person responsible for handling sexual harassment complaints in a large city municipality, attorneys with other non-profit organizations involved in women's issues, lawyers with private practices that include sexual harassment cases, and an attorney who had been involved in the first initiatives towards drafting the Law in 1982.