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Sexual harassment in the workplace is prohibited by Federal law and should not be tolerated. Courts recognize two types of sexual harassment that violate an employee’s civil rights. Quid pro quo sexual harassment occurs when an employer subjects an employee to sexual advances, and conditions that employee’s job status on favorable responses. An employee can also bring a sexual harassment claim against an employer if the employee was in an environment that most people would agree is severely hostile or abusive, that the employee perceived the work surroundings to be hostile, and that the conduct was deeply offensive.
Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment. An employee can successfully bring a claim where a) she was subjected to unwelcome sexual harassment, b) the harassment was based on sex, and c) her submission to unwelcome advances was an express or implied condition for receiving job benefits or refusal resulted in a job detriment. Job benefits/detriments include job status with respect to evaluations, continued employment, promotion, or other aspects of career development.
Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment. Employers can be held liable for sexual harassment in the workplace even if the perpetrator is not a supervisor of the victim, if they knew about the harassment and did not follow company policies. Employers have been held liable when the employee follows procedures outlined in the company’s sexual harassment policy, and the employer did not respond promptly and appropriately.
- Severely Hostile and Abusive. To bring a successful claim, a victim of sexual harassment must show that a reasonable person would consider the treatment or atmosphere at the workplace to be hostile to a point that it changed the working conditions. While being slightly uncomfortable is not likely to be considered severely hostile, the victim does not need to show any kind of specific psychological harm or physical injury for the sexual harassment to be actionable. Courts will consider all the circumstances surrounding the harassment, and determine whether the conduct would have affected a reasonable person.
- Employee Perception. The victim of sexual harassment must show that he or she was not comfortable with the work environment for the claim to be successful. Both men and women can bring sexual harassment claims against their employer, if they can show their work conditions changed and their ability to thrive at the workplace suffered.
- Deeply Offensive. The conduct at question in a sexual harassment case must go beyond mildly offensive and vulgar. There is not a specific test to determine whether conduct is mildly or deeply offensive. Courts will look at all the circumstances and consider the frequency of discriminatory conduct, its severity, whether conduct is physically threatening or humiliating or a mere offensive utterance, and whether conduct unreasonably interferes with the employee’s work performance.
Employee Responsibilities. If you have been the victim of sexual harassment at work, you should contact Brett Gibson immediately for a free consultation. A victim must file a claim within a specific time period of the last incidence of sexual harassment (either 180 or 240 days, depending on the circumstances). You should also keep a journal of the harassment, documenting each incident, the date it occurred, and relevant witnesses. Print hard-copies of abusive e-mails and correspondence. If you believe you have been the victim of sexual harassment, you need legal assistance immediately. Your calls and e-mails are welcome. |
