ABSTRACT
Sexuality has a power and a potential power of its own as work organizations construct sexuality and are constructed by and through sexuality; organizations are arenas of sexual practices. The rituals of back-slapping, sexist joking, and constant reminders of heterosexuality can also serve to exclude homosexual men. Workplace romances are mutually desired relationships between two people at work in which some element of sexuality or physical intimacy exist. As the female body is associated with nurturance, dependence and passivity, and the male body with strength, ability and intelligence, professional women are caught in a double bind. Sexual harassment can even occur in mentoring relationships; mentoring can then lead to women's underachievement at work. Sexual harassment happens to men as well as women, but rarely. Sexual harassment is particularly complex in university or college settings because romantic affiliations between staff and students are going to occur.
