The lack of sexual harassment training has been a problem in every sector and field of work across the United States, and evidently a severely reoccurring problem within unions. Union leaders deal with sexual harassment cases on a daily basis. These complaints reach the top of the employer food chain in some of the most unofficial ways, almost always through the grapevine. That's done to keep most of these incidents off record, but it leaves the union open for lawsuits and continued sexual harassment problems.

One former union president claimed that most of the sexual harassment incidents reached him through third parties and through shop stewards. The proper channels for these problems are going through the HR department, but due to a lack of discipline and sexual harassment training that fact is lost on most.

The term "sexual harassment" has been twisted and changed over the years to something that no one can get a firm idea of. Even union leader David Macaray said he has no "ironclad definition of harassment." That's not because he isn't smart, it's simply because he and most other union members have never gone through sexual harassment training.

One incident that is reported by David Macaray is the case of a woman being called "girlie" as she and another mechanic discussed the best way to go on with their job. The woman reported him, but not to HR, as she should have. Instead she went to her boss.

Her boss went to the union leader, then he went to HR and refused to mention names. All he asked of HR is if calling someone "girlie" was actually sexual harassment. According to them, turns out it is, but wouldn't result in disciplinary action, anyway. When such a gentle term is used, it is a simple written warning, unless there's another offense.

Macaray admits that there are hundreds of other cases that simply did not go reported over the years, but where still serious and complicated. The cases were taken care of without any of the people involved having to take sexual harassment classes or any type of training to help prevent further problems.

The workplaces that are under union control have evolved and changed over the years, making sexual harassment classes a better idea for all. The growing number of cases and increased sensitivity to the matter make sexual harassment training a growing necessity for all work groups, union or not.

Many of the these cases mentioned could have been avoided if two simple steps would have been taken. The first, a proper sexual harassment training class. That will help all new and current union members realize what is and what is not sexual harassment and how to recognize others committing sexual harassment. That knowledge alone could save the union millions in defense and paperwork.

The second thing that could improve these situations is a clear method of reporting sexual harassment. The ability to make sure that all the union members have a clear understanding on how to report sexual harassment is just as important as having sexual harassment training itself.

The first thing that comes to mind between inappropriate behavior for a student and teacher is sexual misconduct. For that very reason schools and universities all over the country have made sexual harassment training mandatory for all their teachers and faculty. Sadly, it's not  a subject that Howard University in Washington, D.C. has taken on with much determination.

Five Howard University students have come forward with claims of sexual harassment ranging from inappropriate comments to actually touching the five students in a sexual way. The five women are claiming that Bright-Abu sexually assaulted them from September 2010 until April 2011.

The five women in the case also claim that nothing was done about the matter after the problem was brought to the school authorities. If this was true, sexual harassment training would be the school's first option for overcoming this problem, but they said nothing to Bright-Abu. Finally, after months of abuse, the women went to D.C. police and the school was forced to act.

One of the plaintiffs in the case, Rukayatu Bello, 22, was quoted as saying, "I really hope no one else has to experience what I had to go through". However, Howard University released a statement saying that they cooperated fully with the police after the administration became aware of the problems with bright-Abu.

The University does admit, however, that as soon as law enforcement came to them Bright-Abu was placed on administrative leave. After a brief internal investigation, the librarian was terminated from his job, giving credence to the idea that he was sexually harassing students. After hearing this, the easy questions instantly come to mind, such as, why didn't the school require Bright-Abu to enroll in sexual harassment classes once they learned of the problem? And, are the school admins saying the students never came to them for help?

According to police records, the unwanted sexual abuse moved from conversation to unwanted sexual contact by Bright-Abu. In April, the women he was assaulting had said enough is enough. They went around the school administration and filed an official police report. Last July the defendant, Bright-Abu, was convicted of two counts of misdemeanor sexual abuse and one count of simple assault. Two of the five women have since graduated, but the other three claim the school has done little to change policies or to keep such things from happening again.

Steve Bullock, one of the lawyers representing the women, said "…Mr. Bright-Abu was known as a flirt in the library with students, and his superiors didn't do anything". This again, brings up the question of why wasn't Bright-Abu placed in a sexual harassment training classes long before his actions hurt more students and put the school into the national spot light in one of the worst ways possible.

It's clear and evident that Howard University needs to change their sexual harassment policy to make all faculty take sexual harassment classes in order to prevent situations just like this. It is also clear that if the school had taken action when the women approached the school administration in the first place, the pain they suffered could have been lessened and even stopped. 

In Edmund, Oklahoma Dr. Medhat Michael was arrested after turning himself in on several counts of sexual harassment charges. Warrants were released in his name after multiple charges were filed by two of his current employees on October 20, 2011. They work for his private practice at Best Care Medical Center. One of the women claiming sexual harassment reported that the sexual harassment began the day of the interview and has continued every day since.

Many of the things that the two women, and later a third, claimed to be experiencing was everything from sexually rude comments, to actually touching and kissing their neck and breasts. Many of the cases that are being claimed against Dr. Michael are text book situations, such as walking behind his female employees and making comments that she's "making him excited." These situations, and many others, are discussed in nearly every sexual harassment training course ever designed.

The same woman that claimed that the harassment had begun the day of the interview went on to say that the doctor would try to kiss her and force hugs upon her. She later told Dr. Michael that his behavior was inappropriate and he should stop. His response was, reportedly, laughter. This is turning out to be a case of non-belief or even full denial on the part of Dr. Michaels. Some simple and short sexual harassment classes may have turned this behavior around in a few sessions. Instead, over time, it was left to build and continue until it eventually exploded into  a sexual harassment lawsuit.

Unfortunately, those three women working at his practice were not the only women that he is now charged with harassing. When charges of sexual harassment are made public, it often gives other victims the strength to come forward as well. This is exactly what happened in the case for Dr. Michael. Two days after the original charges were filed, two more women came forward claiming the very same types of sexual harassment were made against them. One woman who came forward is a current employee at Dr. Michaels practice and the other quit six months earlier.

In 2008, further Edmund city records were discovered showing that Dr. Michael has been charged with sexual harassing his employees. If the Oklahoma state courts would have insisted that he enrolled in sexual harassment training earlier, the chances that he would have committed the same crime again would have dropped by nearly 80%. Every woman he sexually offended was in the same manner as before, making what he does not just illegal but habitual. These habitual cases are exactly what sexual harassment training was made to fix. By ignoring the problem with Dr. Michael, the state is nearly as responsible as the doctor himself. 

The Oklahoma state laws don't require sexual harassment training for small businesses, but it definitely should have taken a closer look at forcing the classes on current offenders. By making individuals that have a problem take sexual harassment training, it can help prevent them from falling back into the same problematic behavior. 

In Utah, a woman is now suing her boss for sexual harassment because of "mini-skirt Mondays" and other strange dress code requirements. Other dress code days he attempted to enforce included “tube top Tuesdays,” “wet T-shirt Wednesdays,” “no bra Thursdays,” and “bikini top Fridays.”

In addition, Anderson alleges that Wright, the owner of Lone Peak Controls and D&L Electric Control Company in Pleasant Grove, Utah, watched pornography in his office, touched her inappropriately, and fired her after she reported the sexual harassment.

"As a result of the stress and emotional trauma of this experience, Ms. Anderson has been losing sleep, seeking professional help and has ulcers," the complaint, filed in U.S. District Court, reads, according to the New York Daily News.

Clearly if these allegations are true, Ms. Anderson has a great sexual harassment lawsuit on her hands. But what is it that in the workplace in the 21st century that bosses think they can still get away with such bizzare behavior? 

Amanda Knox the U.S. girl who was recently released from an Italian prison after being acquitted on murder chargers and said they she was sexual harassed while being incarcerated there. She claimed that an administrator ordered her into her office at night to talk soley about sex. She also said that she was harassed by female inmates.

The harassment only stopped after complaints from her attorney. "I know that in the case of the female prisoners who harassed Amanda Knox sexually that it didn't go to the limit," she says. "In other words, gradually, Amanda Knox learned how to fend off unwanted advances from female prisoners."

Not it may not be surprising that sexual harassment isn't just a product of the U.S. workplace. It happens outside the U.S. and outside the workplace. But fortunately as an American citizen we have the laws to protect us if we're a U.S. worker. Maybe Italy treats sexual harassment differently, who knows. But perhaps those prison guards could do with a little sexual harassment training.

Sexual harassment and violence reduces the value of federal student aid for higher education every school year. Many of the quarter of all women in college who are the victim of a completed or attempted rape interrupt or even end their education as a result of this trauma. 

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights recently increased enforcement of longstanding federal sexual harassment guidelines to protect these victims and our nation's investment in higher education and future. Recognizing that additional reforms are needed to more completely address the challenge, Congress took the next step and introduced the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act or Campus SaVE Act this spring.

The bi-partisan Campus SaVE Act (S. 834/H.R. 2016) modernizes decades old campus safety guidelines found in the Jeanne Clery Act. These enhancements will empower colleges and universities to better prevent and respond to a full spectrum of sexual violence including domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking in addition to sexual assault.

Most victims, about 90% according to U.S. Department of Justice research, know their assailants. They are often fellow students from the same social circle which helps to account for why fewer than 5% are ever reported to the police. The greatest threat doesn't lie along a poorly lit walkway; it hides in plain sight in classrooms, residence halls, and student parties.

In addition to this act, colleges should probably seriously consider sexual harassment training for all staff members and the students at the universities. What this will do is help people understand the potential dangerous situations that could easily lead to sexual harassment. Minimizing sexual harassment and violence will lead to better and safer careers for our female students.

The consequences of sexual harassment seem to come up again and again, but still people don't seem to learn. In this case  Cleve Bryant, Texas' associate athletics director for football operations and a former assistant under Longhorns football coach Mack Brown, was fired earlier this year after an internal investigation determined he sexually harassed a female administrative assistant over a two-year period.

In the university's investigation there was a complain filed by a football department staffer who graduated from the university a few years ago. She told investigators that Bryant pulled down her dress and fondled her breast after she asked about receiving a raise; that he repeatedly told her or sent text messages that he wanted to kiss her; and that he kissed her neck after blocking a doorway once, documents said. Two other women who work in the office allege that Bryant inappropriately kissed them in the past.

All these actions clearly are sexual harassment. Not just the sexual conduct but the tying of sexual favors for promotions, raises and other advancements. Cleve Bryant, who is married, denied the allegations but he was still fired. The woman settled the complaint with the university for unknown compensation.

Once again sexual harassment causes havvoc for the person accused, the accuser, the employer and most likely the families of those involved. Could a simple Texas sexual harassment training have avoided this situation not happen? Maybe or maybe not. But it certainly couldn't have hurt.

Sexual harassment occurs is more places than just the workplace. Take this case of a  Sacramento State college professor accused of sexually harassing four students and three professors. The battle started in 2005 and 2006 when four female students told other professors in the language department that Corral took them to dinner, made sexual comments or hugged and kissed them.

After being accused of sexual harassment, Spanish professor Wilfrido Corral was fired from the university. He challenged the termination and continued teaching during the lengthy appeals process.

Corral sued Sacramento State the same year, alleging that it botched its investigation and discriminated against him for being Latino. He challenged the termination and continued teaching during the lengthy appeals process. Corral sued Sacramento State the same year, alleging that it botched its investigation and discriminated against him for being Latino.

But now Mr. Corral has dropped his lawsuit against the university and resigned. He agreed to stop teaching and California State University agreed not to pursue him for defense costs, according to a settlement the parties signed in July. No money was exchanged in the settlement, but the university has had to pay more than $900,000 to settle claims from some of the women who said Corral harassed them.

You can see the chaos that can erupt from a case of sexual harassment. Not only does it cost money, but costs jobs and affects people personally. A lot of this could maybe have been mitigated through a program of sexual harassment training at the university. No comments were made of the training that is in place now, but certainly the administrators are going to take a close look to see what can be done to make improvements.

A former county firefighter-mechanic was awarded nearly $400K in a sexual harassment lawsuit. The lawsuit arose when he was fired for testifying in a sexual harassment investigation. This was consider sexual harassment related retaliation.

A Los Angeles Superior Court jury found in favor of 50-year-old Acton resident Donald Rakisits, who was awarded a total of $389,945, most of it for future lost wages.

The plaintiff, who filed his lawsuit in August 2009, joined the Los Angeles County Fire Department in August 2001 as a fire equipment mechanic assigned to the North County Fire Shop in Lancaster and was promoted in November 2007 to assistant chief of fleet services in the same location.

The plaintiff said he is proud of his work with the county and believes the lawsuit was necessary in order to present the truth. Rakisits, who now works for the Antelope Valley Transit Authority, said some of the defense witnesses misrepresented what really happened.

Rakisits testified in 2006 against mechanic Grant DeRose, who was accused of sexual harassment by a department secretary. DeRose was later fired, and Rakisits maintained that his supervisor, Craig Weeks, and others retaliated against him with false allegations of time card fraud and poor behavior.

Rakisits alleged that Chris Burroso, a fire equipment mechanic, threatened him in June 2008 by saying, "All I have to do is take a bar and hit Don over the head and kill him and the problem will be gone."

Rakisits maintains he was transferred to another county fire shop in East Los Angeles in a further act of retaliation, forcing him to daily drive 65 miles to work. He says the collective alleged harassment forced him to quit his job.

But former Los Angeles County Fire Department Chief P. Michael Freeman testified he repeatedly told the plaintiff during a Feb. 6, 2009, meeting that he could remain on the job even after Rakisits said in an an email that he planned to leave.

Rakisits could have withdrawn his resignation, Freeman testified.

According to the county's court papers, DeRose before being fired made numerous complaints against Rakisits, alleging he worked on his personal car while on duty, stole tools, used racial slurs and took county vehicles on personal trips.

Burroso alleged Rakisits committed time card fraud on behalf of another mechanic, the county's court papers state.

Another case of a legal battle and pain and suffering that could easily have been avoided. Maybe sexual harassment training in this situation could have helped. Especially if it helped people become compliant with california AB-1825 rules.

Lanisha Cole, a former Price is Right model, filed a lawsuit this month claiming whe was wrongfully terminated and sexually harassed by the producers of the show. She isn't the first woman to have these complaints on this show.

In her lawsuit she claims that two of the producers exploited her via "power and control over women by bullying and harassing."

Ms. Cole worked on the show for 8 years until 2010. She claims one of the producers played favorites with a model he was dating and also made up rules that she hadn't known existed and berated her for violating them. One thing she was yelled at in front of the other models that she wasn't wearing a microphone when she should have.

While the show has yet to comment, a past full of complaints — including sexual harassment, racial discrimination, wrongful termination and emotional abuse and intimidation — against Price is Right producers and its longtime former host Bob Barker, depicts an institutionalized attitude that allowed executives to treat models on the show (and female staffers) as second-class citizens.

Although Bob Barker, the show's long time host, had claimed that he wanted to retire in 2007 "before he got old," rumors had begun to surface that he was being pushed out because of a threatened lawsuit of racial discrimination. A mere four months after Barker's final show, Deborah Curling, who had been a contestant screener on Price for 24 years, filed a suit against Barker and the producers. Curling claimed racial discrimination (she is black), sexual and mental harassment and abuse. Curling had also previously testified against Barker in a case brought by a female production assistant named Linda Riegart.

Regardless of whether this case goes forward or not and whether or not the facts are true, even in Hollywood sexual harassment can be a problem. Properly training employees and supervisors in not only smart business but it's also a requirement in California to comply with AB-1825.