EXCERPTS FROM THE SEXUAL HARASSMENT ACT, 2021: Maintaining a register
THE Sexual Harassment (Protection and Prevention) Act, 2021, which took effect on July 3, is being hailed as an important piece of legislation in ushering in concrete measures to protect the vulnerable and promote cultural change to end sexual harassment.
Here is an excerpt from Section 8, as it relates to keeping a sexual offenders register.
8.—(1) An employer and person in charge of an institution shall maintain or cause to be maintained, a register containing the following information in respect of every sexual harassment claim lodged pursuant to Section 5 or 6—
(a) the name of the parties to the sexual harassment claim;
(b) the particulars of the sexual harassment claim;
(c) the date of which the sexual harassment claim was lodged;
(d) any action taken by the employer or person in charge of an institution in relation to the sexual harassment claim;
(e) such other particulars relating to the sexual harassment claim as may be prescribed.
(2) An employer and person in charge of an institution shall ensure that the information contained in the register is kept in a secure manner and that the confidentiality of the information is preserved…
…(6) The information in the register shall be kept for a period of eight years.
