What does workplace sexual harassment do to a victim's career?

MELISSA* (name changed to protect her identity) had just started work as a senior manager at a multinational corporation (MNC) when she began to be harassed by the chief executive officer (CEO) of the company.

The CEO started texting her on a daily basis, which Melissa found odd, because she did not report to him directly. These texts would sometimes include inappropriate comments about other female staff. She chose to ignore these texts and focus on her work, wanting to make a good impression. Over time, however, the daily texting escalated to physical harassment at her cubicle.

After continuing to decline the CEO's advances, Melissa was informed that she would be let go. Although she was never clearly provided a work-related reason for her dismissal, she suspects her experience of harassment - something she never asked for, and coped with as best she could - had something to do with it.