Common Misconceptions Companies Have While Selecting An External Member For ICC

Written by: Rohit Iyengar

The ICC of an organisation is an indispensable body when it comes to the implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013. It is the first authority that an aggrieved employee, or any other individual who has faced sexual harassment from an employee of the organisation can approach with a complaint of sexual harassment. Every employer has a statutory duty to constitute an ICC in their workplace in the event of there being 10 or more workers employed.

An Internal Complaints Committee consists of:

– A Presiding Officer

– Two other members from within the organisation as the internal members,

– While also requiring at least one person who is external to the organisation.

While it is relatively easier to find the internal members to constitute the ICC, being able to find an appropriate external member is not usually an easy task for most employers. While the criteria for selecting the external members are laid down in the POSH Act, 2013, many organisations are unable to find an appropriate individual as they fail to accurately interpret the statute.

According to Section 4 of the Act, the external member is an individual who is chosen from:

– A non-governmental organisation, or

– An association committed to the cause of women, or

– A person who is familiar in the issues relating to sexual harassment.

The common error which is committed by most companies is that they consider being a member of a non-governmental organisation to be the sole deciding factor while selecting a person for the role.

Choosing the external member does not necessarily have to be confined to those individuals who are members of NGOs. The person chosen could be a private organisation/partnership, etc.

The vital criteria which needs to be given due importance by the organisation while choosing an individual is the expertise that they possess in matters relating to sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is a relatively newer area and finding people who are experts in this field is a tough task.

In most cases the association that the person is chosen from, is completely unrelated to the issue of sexual harassment. This could lead to a potential situation where the selected person fulfils the criteria on paper, being from an NGO which deals with cases of domestic violence.

While the person would certainly have the best interests of women in mind, their knowledge and ability to interpret the law relating to sexual harassment would not be up to the standard desired by the organisation. This would lead to unsatisfactory decision making which would render the ICC unable to deal with complaints internally, as the complainants would prefer appealing against the decisions in such cases.

However, what most organisations fail to realise is that the external member does not have to be a member of an NGO, but simply a person who has an understanding of the law relating to sexual harassment and related issues. However, there is a huge gap between issues of domestic violence and sexual harassment, and specially  which renders such a choice ineffective.

The external member of the ICC in an organisation plays a vital role as they provide an external perspective towards the complaints of sexual harassment that arise in an organisation.

For this reason, it is important that companies be fully aware of the guidelines for appointing the external member. Being a member of a non-government organisation is not a mandatory requirement for the external member. Further, the person could be from any private organisation as well. The important thing that is to be kept in mind while selecting them is the knowledge and expertise that they possess in the field of sexual harassment and the impact that it would have on their workplace. In doing so, organisations would be able to ensure that the functioning of their ICC is as efficient as possible.

About the author: Rohit Iyengar is currently a student of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.

Ungender Insights is the product of our learning from advisory work at Ungender. Do you wish to engage an external member for your company’s ICC? Are you looking at engaging an expert advisor who can conduct capacity building and training sessions for your organization. You can send us your queries/requests at contact@ungender.in or call us at +91 9582630056