The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (commonly known as the POSH Act) is a legislative Act of the Parliament of India that provides a statutory mechanism to protect women from sexual harassment at their place of work. The Act came into force on December 9, 2013, and was enacted to ensure a safe working environment, recognizing that sexual harassment violates a woman's fundamental rights to equality (Article 14), life with dignity (Article 21), and the right to practice any profession (Article 19(1)(g)).
The Act's origin lies in the landmark Supreme Court judgment of Vishaka and Ors. v. State of Rajasthan in 1997. This judgment, delivered on August 13, 1997, established the Vishaka Guidelines as legally binding norms to fill the legislative vacuum, after the gang-rape of social worker Bhanwari Devi. The ratio of the Vishaka judgment was that sexual harassment at the workplace violates fundamental rights under Articles 14, 15, 19(1)(g), and 21 of the Constitution, and the Court could issue binding guidelines until a formal law was enacted. The POSH Act, 2013, superseded and transformed these guidelines into a comprehensive statutory framework.
The Act mandates that every workplace with 10 or more employees must constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) to receive and redress complaints. For workplaces with fewer than ten employees or where the complaint is against the employer, a Local Complaints Committee (LCC) must be established at the district level. Section 3 of the Act prohibits any woman from being subjected to sexual harassment, which is broadly defined to include unwelcome acts like physical contact and advances, a demand for sexual favours, or sexually coloured remarks. The Act also covers concepts like quid pro quo harassment and a hostile work environment.
The Act connects directly to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, which criminalized sexual harassment, stalking, and voyeurism. While the core of the Act remains, recent proposed changes, such as the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Amendment Bill, 2024 (a Private Member's Bill), seek to extend the complaint filing period from the current three months (Section 9) to one year and eliminate the conciliation provision (Section 10). However, these are only proposed amendments and have not yet become law. Separately, the Companies (Accounts) Second Amendment Rules 2025 now mandate detailed disclosures on POSH Act compliance in Board Reports, including the number of complaints received and resolved, to increase corporate accountability.