Overview: The short rule

Workplace harassment may be prosecuted or addressed under the Violence Against Women and Their Children Act (VAWC), Republic Act No. 9262, but only when the harasser is an intimate partner covered by the law (e.g., husband, former husband, boyfriend/ex-boyfriend, or someone with whom the woman has/had a dating or sexual relationship, or a common child).

VAWC is relationship-based, not location-based. So the key question is not “Did it happen at work?” but “Who did it, and what is the relationship?”

If the harassment comes from a boss, co-worker, client, or any person with no qualifying intimate relationship, then VAWC is generally not the correct law—but the act may still be actionable under workplace and anti-harassment laws (notably RA 7877 and RA 11313) and/or the Revised Penal Code, plus administrative and labor remedies.

1) What counts as “workplace harassment” in Philippine legal practice?

“Workplace harassment” is an umbrella term. In real cases, it often falls into one (or more) of these:

Sexual harassment
- Unwanted sexual advances, requests, remarks, touching, coercion, “quid pro quo,” or hostile environment conduct.
Gender-based harassment (including sexist, misogynistic, LGBTQ-targeted, or gendered humiliation)
- Conduct that uses gender to demean, intimidate, or control.
Bullying/mobbing and hostile work environment
- Repeated insults, isolation, sabotage, threats, or humiliation.
Stalking, threats, coercion, and intimidation spilling into work
- Repeated calls/messages, showing up at the workplace, public scenes, doxxing, sending emails to supervisors, etc.

Because “workplace harassment” is not always a single defined crime, the right remedy depends on (a) relationship, (b) behavior, and (c) evidence.

2) VAWC (RA 9262): What it covers—and why the relationship matters

A. Who is protected?

VAWC protects:

Women who are victims of violence committed by a covered offender; and
Their children (legitimate or illegitimate), including children under the woman’s care in certain situations.

B. Who can be charged under VAWC?

VAWC is aimed at violence committed by a person against a woman:

who is his wife or former wife, or
a woman with whom he has or had a dating relationship or sexual relationship, or
a woman with whom he has a common child.

This is the gateway requirement. If the alleged harasser does not fall into this intimate-partner category, a VAWC case usually fails even if the harassment is severe.

C. What kinds of “violence” count under VAWC?

VAWC recognizes multiple forms of abuse, including:

Physical violence – bodily harm.
Sexual violence – rape and sexual acts, and other sexually abusive conduct.
Psychological violence – acts causing or likely to cause mental or emotional suffering (often including intimidation, harassment, stalking, public humiliation, repeated verbal abuse).
Economic abuse – making the woman financially dependent or attempting to control/sabotage her capacity to earn (including preventing her from engaging in a legitimate profession or work, or controlling financial resources).

Important: VAWC can apply regardless of where the acts occur (home, workplace, online, public). What matters is that (1) the offender is a covered intimate partner, and (2) the acts fit the law’s definitions.

3) When workplace harassment can be filed under VAWC

Workplace conduct can be VAWC if it is committed by a covered intimate partner and amounts to psychological, sexual, physical, or economic abuse. Common patterns include:

Scenario A: The abusive partner harasses the woman at work to intimidate or control her

Examples:

Repeatedly showing up at the workplace to create scenes or monitor her.
Calling, texting, or messaging nonstop during work hours to demand “proof” of location.
Threatening her in front of colleagues or clients.
Sending humiliating messages to the woman’s supervisor or co-workers.
Spreading rumors to damage her reputation.

These can support psychological violence, especially when they cause fear, anxiety, humiliation, or emotional distress.

Scenario B: Workplace harassment used as economic abuse

Examples:

The partner repeatedly disrupts her work so she gets reprimanded or fired.
The partner threatens the employer or co-workers to force the woman to resign.
The partner confiscates work tools, IDs, laptop, phone, or transportation money.
The partner forbids her from working, blocks her commute, or forces her to quit.

These may fall under economic abuse, particularly when the conduct aims to stop her from earning or make her dependent.

Scenario C: Sexualized harassment by an intimate partner that happens at work

Examples:

Unwanted sexual acts, coercion, or threats connected to sex.
Sharing intimate photos/videos to co-workers (or threatening to).
Using sexual humiliation to control her.

Depending on the specific conduct, this may be sexual violence and/or psychological violence under VAWC, and can also overlap with other criminal laws.

Scenario D: Digital harassment connected to the workplace

Examples:

The partner emails HR/management with accusations to ruin her standing.
Doxxing, fake social media posts, impersonation, or threats sent to work contacts.
Harassment through collaboration tools (Teams/Slack/email) that creates fear or humiliation.

VAWC can cover technology-facilitated abuse when it’s within the covered relationship and causes psychological/economic harm.

4) When workplace harassment usually cannot be filed under VAWC

If the harasser is not a covered intimate partner, VAWC is usually not the correct law. Examples:

A supervisor harasses an employee (but no dating/sexual relationship, no common child).
A co-worker bullies, humiliates, stalks, or sexually harasses a colleague.
A client/customer makes threats or sexual remarks.
A stranger stalks or harasses someone at or near the workplace.

These acts may still be illegal—but typically under RA 7877, RA 11313, the Revised Penal Code, or labor/administrative mechanisms, not VAWC.

5) If it’s not VAWC, what laws usually apply to workplace harassment?

A. Anti-Sexual Harassment Act (RA 7877)

Traditionally used when:

The harasser has authority, influence, or moral ascendancy over the victim in a workplace (e.g., supervisor-subordinate), and
The act involves sexual harassment (quid pro quo or hostile environment).

It also contemplates employer obligations (policies, investigations), and can create administrative exposure.

B. Safe Spaces Act (RA 11313)

This broadened the legal framework by addressing gender-based sexual harassment in:

public spaces,
online spaces, and
workplaces (including conduct among peers, not just authority-based harassment).

It also focuses strongly on institutional duties: employers must adopt policies, create reporting mechanisms, act on complaints, and prevent retaliation.

C. Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710)

A rights-based law requiring the State and institutions to prevent discrimination and gender-based violence. It often supports policy duties and can reinforce administrative and institutional accountability.

D. Revised Penal Code and related special laws (depending on facts)

Possible charges (fact-specific):

Grave threats / light threats
Slander / oral defamation or libel/cyberlibel (for defamatory statements)
Coercion
Acts of lasciviousness (for physical sexual assault short of rape)
Physical injuries
Unjust vexation / similar nuisance-type offenses (depending on charging practice and circumstances)

Special laws may apply to specific conduct:

Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act (RA 9995) (nonconsensual recording/sharing of sexual content)
Cybercrime Prevention Act (RA 10175) (when committed through ICT; also affects evidence and penalties)
Data Privacy Act (RA 10173) (certain forms of unlawful processing/disclosure of personal data)

E. Labor and administrative remedies

Even when conduct is criminal, workplace processes matter:

HR administrative cases (code of conduct violations)
Employer investigations and sanctions
DOLE mechanisms and labor cases (e.g., constructive dismissal, unsafe workplace, retaliation)
Government workplace cases (Civil Service rules, administrative offenses)

6) Practical guide: deciding whether VAWC is appropriate (workplace setting)

Step 1: Identify the relationship

Is the harasser a current/former spouse, boyfriend/ex, sexual partner, or person with a common child?
- If yes, VAWC is potentially available.
- If no, use RA 7877 / RA 11313 / penal code / labor mechanisms instead.

Step 2: Identify the form of abuse

Even with the right relationship, you still need conduct that fits VAWC:

Psychological abuse (harassment, intimidation, stalking, humiliation)
Economic abuse (work sabotage, preventing employment)
Sexual abuse
Physical abuse

Step 3: Choose remedies that match your goal

Immediate safety / stopping contact: protection orders
Punishment / criminal accountability: criminal complaint
Workplace accountability: HR/administrative complaint + employer compliance duties
Often, cases run in parallel (e.g., protection order + workplace complaint + criminal filing), provided they are legally consistent.

7) How VAWC is filed when the abuse is connected to work

A. Protection Orders (often the fastest “stop the harassment” tool)

VAWC allows protection orders that can include:

No-contact orders (calls, texts, messages, social media)
Stay-away orders from the woman’s home, school, and workplace
Removal/exclusion from certain places
Other protective measures tailored to safety and stability

A workplace-related pattern (showing up at work, contacting the employer, public scenes) is often strong support for a stay-away from workplace condition.

B. Criminal complaint under VAWC

Generally involves:

A complaint/affidavit detailing acts, dates, places (including the workplace), and the relationship basis
Supporting evidence (messages, call logs, witnesses, HR incident reports, CCTV references)
Filing through appropriate law enforcement/prosecutorial channels

VAWC cases commonly turn on:

Proof of the covered relationship, and
Proof of the abusive acts and their impact (especially for psychological violence).

8) Evidence issues in workplace-based VAWC and harassment cases

Workplace incidents often generate “structured” evidence. Useful categories include:

A. Digital communications

Text messages, chat screenshots (with context)
Emails (including full headers when possible)
Call logs and voicemail
Social media messages/posts

Practical tip: preserve originals and backups; document dates and the account owners.

B. Workplace records

HR incident reports and written complaints
CCTV logs (request preservation quickly; many systems overwrite)
Security guard blotters / visitor logs
Incident memos and administrative findings

C. Witnesses

Co-workers who saw confrontations, threats, stalking, or humiliation
Supervisors who received harassing messages
Security personnel

D. Proof of psychological impact (especially for psychological violence)

Personal journal/incident timeline (dates, what happened, effects)
Medical or psychological consultation records (if obtained)
Testimony describing fear, anxiety, loss of sleep, panic, humiliation, work disruption

Not every case requires clinical proof, but psychological documentation can strengthen claims where the defense is “it’s just a misunderstanding.”

9) Overlap problems: can one act lead to multiple cases?

Yes, but charging strategy matters.

One course of conduct may violate:
- VAWC (if intimate partner), and
- RA 11313/RA 7877 (if it is sexual/gender-based harassment in the workplace), and/or
- Penal Code offenses (threats, defamation, coercion), and/or
- Cyber-related offenses (if committed online).

However, double jeopardy concerns can arise if the same act is prosecuted twice under laws that punish essentially the same offense with the same elements. In practice, prosecutors and lawyers usually select charges that best fit the evidence and the victim’s priorities (stopping the conduct quickly vs. pursuing penalties vs. workplace accountability).

A particularly important overlap example:

A woman’s intimate partner is also her supervisor.
- The relationship supports VAWC, and the authority relationship supports RA 7877/RA 11313, so multiple legal routes may be viable.

10) Employer responsibilities when harassment is happening at work

Even when the offender is not an employee (e.g., the victim’s partner intrudes at the workplace), employers commonly have duties to:

provide a safe work environment,
create reporting routes,
act on complaints promptly,
prevent retaliation, and
coordinate with security and HR to implement safety plans (e.g., access control, visitor bans consistent with protection orders).

When the workplace harassment is gender-based or sexual, employer duties are more explicit under RA 11313 and related rules and policies.

11) Common misconceptions

“It happened at work, so it must be under workplace sexual harassment laws, not VAWC.”

Not necessarily. If the offender is a covered intimate partner and the conduct fits VAWC, the workplace location does not bar a VAWC case.

“VAWC is only for physical violence.”

Incorrect. VAWC explicitly recognizes psychological and economic abuse—often the core of workplace-related intimate partner harassment.

“If the harasser is a co-worker, I can file VAWC because I’m a woman.”

VAWC is not a general women’s protection statute against all offenders. It is designed for violence by intimate partners. For co-workers or bosses, RA 7877/RA 11313 and other remedies are usually the correct path.

“If there’s no bruising, it’s not a strong case.”

A pattern of stalking, intimidation, humiliation, and work sabotage can be strong—especially with messages, witnesses, HR records, and a clear timeline.

Conclusion

Workplace harassment can be filed under VAWC (RA 9262) in the Philippines when the harasser is a covered intimate partner and the acts amount to psychological, sexual, physical, or economic abuse, even if the workplace is the main stage where the abuse happens. When the harasser is not an intimate partner, VAWC is typically unavailable, but Philippine law still provides multiple routes—especially through RA 7877, RA 11313, workplace administrative processes, and criminal laws tailored to threats, coercion, defamation, sexual acts, voyeurism, and cyber harassment.