Abuse of power?

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Is the following an abuse of power?

A woman, Anna, starts an internship at a small firm. She has a supervisor, Tom, who is responsible for her during the internship. Anna is autistic (which Tom is aware of) and finds it difficult to settle in to the new environment. However Tom is very nice and supportive, and looks out for her. As the weeks go on they develop a friendship, and Anna feels more at ease at work. Being autistic, however, she doesn't notice the point where Tom starts crossing lines for what is appropriate for a supervisor-trainee relationship.
Last night Tom invited Anna to have a drink after work. Anna agrees, thinking he's being friendly. She also thinks there will be others from the firm there as well, which turns out not to be the case. As the night progresses, Tom starts crossing lines in ways that are obvious even to Anna. He asks questions a little to personal, gets a little too close on the dance floor, and gets a little hands-on. Anna tries to brush it off, back away, point out he's her supervisor etc, but is afraid of confronting him because she knows she needs his approval to pass the internship.
In the end, he tries to have his way with her in the bathroom at the club. Anna says no, but Tom doesn't stop. Anna pushes him away and heads for the door.

Now Anna is really anxious about going back to work on Monday. She doesn't know if what has happened is an abuse of power. She could have been more clear about drawing lines, but she also hasn't encouraged him. And she's afraid of reporting the incident out of fear it will invalidate her internship, which she needs for her degree.

Yes, and 'Anna' actually did make it very clear that she did not consent to his activities.

She was pushing him away and brushing-him off and otherwise not consenting to what he has done.

Anna should do more than file a report but even report this to the law possibly as this is sexual harrassment and sexual assault.

Classic case of reportable sexual harassment, though not grounds for any criminal legal action......


Until he tried to have "his way" with her in the bathroom. That's a sexual assault. If he penetrated her vagina, it's first-degree rape.

Yes, as previous posters said, that is clear cut abuse of power, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and possibly more.

In this scenario, the victim should report the boss' actions to HR at the company, who will write up a recommendation for her to use at school and for career use. She should also report it to the person in authority at her school and they will take care of it on that end. The victim will be given a passing grade for the internship and-

I'm going to put in a new paragraph here because this is important-

the victim needs to go to a women's counseling center to discuss what happened, to fully understand that it wasn't her fault, and to help her feel empowered going into future career situations.

As an aspie Anna might have been giving off 'victim' vibes, giving the impression she is easily taken advantage of or naïve. Do you think?

I'm not blaming her, it is his fault for taking advantage of weakness.

I'm going to jump in here, not because this isn't a valid point, but because I've researched this a great deal.

OVER 90 percent of people on the autism spectrum have been bullied, coerced, or taken advantage of either financially or socially, including via sexual abuse. I can find the article if anyone is interested.

There are certain predator types that are able to pick out aspies and exploit what are typically strengths- honesty, ability to trust, kindness, and willingness to put one's own comfort aside in order to give another person the benefit of the doubt. You can't really avoid being targeted by a predator. Over time, you can learn to pick up signs that one is in your life and you can get away from them quicker. They make it their business to be very good at taking advantage of and manipulating people. Normal people can't make it their business to always be on guard against this kind of person. Most people you meet won't be like this.

Yeah you're right,thanks for elaborating