The POSH Act has been introduced and is mandatory for all companies in India to provide women employees with a safe and secure workplace environment free from sexual harassment. As per the Sexual Harassment of Women (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act) read with the Sexual Harassment of Women (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Rules 2013 (Rules), every employer, including government/non-governmental organization employing 10 or more employees, is required to constitute an Internal Committee (IC) for inquiring into complaints of sexual harassment filed by any woman at the workplace.

The POSH Act protects only women and is not gender-neutral legislation. Therefore, the safeguards under the POSH Act do not apply to ‘men victims’. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Work Place Act was made mandatory by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs for all private companies to disclose compliance under POSH Act through their Annual Board Report. The POSH Act requires companies to make an annual filing that discloses details such as the number of cases filed, pending, or disposed of by the ICC in the company’s annual report.

The POSH Act extends to the ‘whole of India’. It is mandatory for employers having 10 or more employees to register their Internal Complaints Committee (ICC). The registration of this Act varies from state to state. The Law applies to private and public sector companies, government bodies, ministries, NGOs and educational institutions.

POSH was the very first legislative redressal of the grievances of the women victims of workplace harassment. It states that the employers of a company are duly responsible for ensuring a safe working environment by preventing, prohibiting and addressing the serious situation of sexual harassment.