Sexuality in the workplace: Organizational control, sexual harassment, andthe pursuit of pleasure

Flirting, bantering, and other sexual interactions are commonplace in work organizations. Not all of these interactions constitute harassment or assau lt; consensual sexual relationships, defined as those reflecting positive a nd autonomous expressions of workers' sexual desire, are also prevalent in the workplace and are the focus of this paper. We begin by reviewing resear ch on the distinction between sexual harassment and sexual consent. Next we examine popular and business literatures on office romance. Finally we dis cuss sociological research on consensual sexual relationships, including re search on mate selection, organizational policy, and workplace culture. We argue that sexual behaviors must be understood in context, as an interplay between organizational control and individual agency.