POSH Act Explained: Your Rights Against Workplace Harassment

Last updated: 12 October 2026 · By the Asuraa Team

Quick answer: The POSH Act, 2013 protects women of any age from sexual harassment at any workplace, including client sites and employer transport. Every employer must set up an Internal Committee. You can file a written complaint within three months of the incident, extendable by three more months. If there is no IC or the complaint is against the employer, approach the district Local Committee or the SHe-Box portal.

Key takeaways

• The POSH Act protects women of any age at any workplace, including trainees and contract staff, client sites and employer-provided transport.
• Every employer must set up an Internal Committee led by a senior woman, with at least half women members and one external member.
• File a written complaint within three months of the incident or last incident; the committee can extend this by up to three months with reasons.
• If there is no Internal Committee or the complaint is against the employer, approach the district Local Committee or use the SHe-Box portal.
• The complaint, identities and proceedings must stay confidential, and failing to prove a complaint is not by itself grounds for action against you.

What the POSH Act is and who it protects

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 is usually called the POSH Act. It is administered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development and came into force on 9 December 2013.

Its core promise: no woman shall be subjected to sexual harassment at any workplace. Key points:

• It covers women of any age, whether employed or not. The Act protects an "aggrieved woman" who alleges sexual harassment at a workplace, so a visitor, candidate or client can also be covered.
• "Employee" is defined broadly. It includes regular, temporary, ad hoc and daily-wage workers, people hired through contractors, trainees and apprentices.
• Private and public workplaces are both covered, in organised and unorganised sectors.
• "Workplace" is wider than your office. It includes any place you visit because of your work, including transport provided by the employer. Client sites, offsite events and work trips can count.

What counts as sexual harassment under the Act

The Act lists unwelcome acts or behaviour, whether direct or implied, such as:

• physical contact and advances
• a demand or request for sexual favours
• sexually coloured remarks
• showing pornography
• any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature

Linked to such behaviour, a promise of preferential treatment, a threat about your job, creating a hostile environment or humiliating treatment can also amount to sexual harassment.

The key question is whether the behaviour was unwelcome to you.

The Internal Committee: your first point of contact

Every employer must constitute an Internal Committee (IC), often still called the ICC, by a written order. Where an organisation has offices in different places, a committee must be set up at each office or administrative unit.

Employers must display the order constituting the IC in a visible place. If you do not know who is on it, check notice boards, the intranet or your HR policy, or ask HR.

How to file a complaint, step by step

1. Write down what happened soon. Note dates, places, what was said or done, and any witnesses. Save emails, chats and call logs.
2. Find your Internal Committee. If there is none, or the complaint is against the employer, see the Local Committee section below.
3. Make a written complaint. The Act says the complaint should be in writing. If you cannot write it, the Presiding Officer or any IC member must give you reasonable help to put it in writing. Under the 2013 Rules, the complainant submits six copies with supporting documents and the names and addresses of witnesses.
4. Watch the time limit. File within three months of the incident, or within three months of the last incident if it happened more than once. The committee can extend this by up to three more months if it is satisfied that circumstances prevented you from filing earlier, and it must record its reasons in writing.
5. Ask for interim relief if you need it. During the inquiry, on your written request, the committee can recommend transferring you or the other person, leave of up to three months for you, or, under the Rules, stopping the respondent from reporting on your work performance.
6. Take part in the inquiry. The respondent gets a copy of the complaint and a chance to reply. Under the Rules, neither side can bring a lawyer to represent them at any stage. The inquiry must be completed within 90 days.
7. Receive the outcome. The committee gives its report to the employer within 10 days of finishing the inquiry, and the employer must act on the recommendations within 60 days.

Before an inquiry, you may ask for conciliation if you want it; the Act says no monetary settlement can be the basis of conciliation.

If you cannot file yourself, the Rules allow a relative, friend, co-worker or someone who knows about the incident to file for you, generally with your written consent.

The Local Committee and the SHe-Box portal

Each district has a District Officer who constitutes a Local Committee (LC). You can approach the LC when:

• your workplace has fewer than ten workers and so has no IC, or
• the complaint is against the employer.

The Ministry of Women and Child Development also runs the SHe-Box portal (shebox.wcd.gov.in), an online single-window system for women in public and private, organised and unorganised workplaces. According to the portal, a complaint submitted there is sent directly to the concerned authority with jurisdiction. You need an email address and mobile number to register.

Confidentiality and protection from retaliation

The Act prohibits publishing or making known the contents of the complaint, the identities and addresses of the complainant, respondent and witnesses, the inquiry proceedings, the committee's recommendations and the action taken. Breaking this rule attracts a penalty. Information about the justice secured may be shared only without revealing names or identifying details.

The Act does not use the word "retaliation", but it guards against it: job threats can themselves amount to harassment, and interim relief can move the respondent or remove their power to assess your work. Many company policies also ban victimisation; if it happens, report it to the IC in writing.

The Act is also clear that a mere inability to substantiate a complaint or provide adequate proof need not attract action against the complainant. Action is possible only if an inquiry finds the complaint was malicious or knowingly false.

If you disagree with the outcome or need more help

You can appeal against the committee's recommendations, or their non-implementation, within 90 days. If the conduct is also a criminal offence, the employer has a duty to assist you in filing a police complaint if you choose to. The POSH process and a criminal complaint are separate routes.

You do not have to carry this alone. Lean on people you trust and consider a counsellor. In India, Tele-MANAS offers free, round-the-clock mental health support on 14416 or 1800-891-4416. For advice on your specific situation, a lawyer or your State Legal Services Authority can help.

Choosing a safer workplace from the start

On asuraa.in, every company is verified before a fresher job is posted, and apply links are checked every morning so dead listings are closed. Once you join, read your HR policy in your first week at a new job and note who sits on the Internal Committee.

Frequently asked questions

What is the time limit to file a POSH complaint?

Within three months of the incident, or of the last incident if there were several. The Internal or Local Committee can extend this by up to three more months if circumstances prevented you from filing earlier, recording its reasons in writing.

Can a trainee or contract worker file a complaint under the POSH Act?

Yes. The Act defines employee broadly to include trainees, apprentices, contract workers and people on temporary, ad hoc or daily-wage terms. It also protects women who are not employed at that workplace, such as visitors.

What if my company has no Internal Committee?

If the workplace has fewer than ten workers, or the complaint is against the employer, you can approach the Local Committee set up by the District Officer. You can also use the government's SHe-Box portal, which sends complaints to the concerned authority.

Will my complaint be kept confidential?

The Act prohibits making public the contents of the complaint, the identities of the people involved, the inquiry proceedings, the recommendations and the action taken. Breaking this rule attracts a penalty.

What happens if I cannot prove my complaint?

The Act says a mere inability to substantiate a complaint or provide adequate proof need not attract action against the complainant. Action is possible only if an inquiry finds the complaint was malicious or knowingly false.