Doesn't seem like a problem to me....

As long as teasing, gestures, etc. are considered sexual harassment, the numbers will be large.

One in six female city workers reported being sexually harassed last year, according to a survey.

The report released Thursday by the Los Angeles Commission on the Status of Women shows that harassment claims have dropped by more than 50 percent since 1992, the last time the city conducted such a study.

But Paula Petrotta, the commission's executive director, said the problem remains serious.

"It still is significant in terms of the morale, the perception, the litigation," Petrotta said. "The percentages may not be as high, but that's still a lot of people."

The survey was sent to all 12,793 female city workers and filled out by 3,564. Six hundred claimed they were sexually harassed.

In 71 percent of the cases, the alleged behavior involved teasing, jokes, remarks, insults, questions or sexually charged language. Nearly 30 percent reported suggestive gestures, ogling, whistling or other sounds, and four women reported attempted rape or threats of violence.

Petrotta said she asked Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to appoint an ombudsman to look into the problem.

Four women reported something serious - I'd like to know if they actually reported that to the police. But, it appears that just about all of these cases are about fairly innocuous behavior, no?