What can recent events teach us about sexual harassment? Minimize the chances of being a victim

In recent months, news about sexual harassment in the workplace has appeared on the front pages of every major newspaper and in the top hour of every major television news show in America. Unfortunately, the current spate of coverage has been largely without context or depth. Widespread media attention has failed to illuminate much, if any, information about what types of misconduct actually constitute sexual harassment in the workplace. In an effort to shed some much-needed light on the subject, let’s examine what actions have been determined by the courts to amount to actionable sexual harassment.

Courts have defined two forms of sexual harassment: “quid pro quo harassment” and “hostile environment harassment.” “Quid pro quo” is the Latin phrase “this for that.” In a “traditional” quid pro quo case, a supervisor conditions a subordinate’s future or continued employment and/or other potential employment-related financial benefits (for example, promotions, raises, bonuses, vacations) on her agreeing to have sex with him and/or otherwise provide him with sexual favors.

By comparison, hostile environment harassment does not necessarily involve the extortion of job benefits in exchange for sexual favors. As the category description suggests, with this type of harassment, a supervisor or co-worker engages in conduct that makes the workplace unbearably toxic for the victim. This type of abuse can range from repeated verbal teasing to physical assault.

You should be aware that allegations of hostile environment sexual harassment do not require the harasser to express sexual attraction or romantic interest in the victim. As in analogous cases involving harassment based on race or religion, the law protects employees from having their work environment adversely affected as a result of comments or conduct based on gender considerations. Whether the harasser feels or was sexually attracted to the victim is not a determining factor. The most salient questions are (1) whether the harasser has made the environment so toxic that a “reasonable person” would find it offensive and (2) whether the harassment stemmed from envious gender-based considerations.

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”), as amended, a business remains strictly liable for proven quid pro quo harassment perpetrated by its managers. Therefore, if a victimized employee can establish through a preponderance of direct or circumstantial evidence that her supervisor subjected her to quid pro quo harassment, then the employer must bear the financial brunt of any damages awarded. .

In contrast, an aggrieved worker who complains of hostile environment harassment under Title VII must first notify management that her supervisor and/or her co-worker have subjected her to a hostile work environment. If the harassment does not involve a tangible employment action, then the affected employee must essentially show that he or she notified management of the harassment and that, despite such notification, the harassment continued. An employee who unreasonably fails to file an internal complaint with management will likely be barred from pursuing a hostile environment claim in court. Accordingly, as a general matter, a successful plaintiff pursuing a hostile environment cause of action must have evidence that (1) the alleged underlying harassment actually took place, and (2) although he notified his employer of the hostile environment, the continued abusive behavior.

Public complaints filed by female subordinates against candidates for the US Supreme Court and the US Presidency can offer critical insight into the candidates’ respective suitability (or lack thereof) for high office. While his accounts are therefore of national importance, the scourge of sexual harassment in the workplace remains an even more important national problem. Sexual harassment can and does affect working women at all economic levels, from minimum wage to “seven figures.” (While a higher income certainly provides a greater measure of protection against such abuse, it does not invariably protect workers at the higher end of the economic ladder.)

For the past 15 years, women have filed 11,000 to 16,000 sexual harassment complaints annually with the EEOC and state and local Fair Employment Practices Agencies (“FEPA”). For each of these complaints, dozens, if not hundreds, of women experience similar abuses at work but do not file administrative or judicial complaints. According to a November 15 Washington Post-ABC News poll, 24 percent of women surveyed reported that they had been personally harassed at work, and nearly two-thirds of all respondents concluded that sexual harassment in the workplace It is a continuing problem in this country.

If you are faced with a situation involving quid pro quo and/or harassment in a hostile environment, you can take steps to better navigate through pernicious landmines at work. As an initial matter, you should report the harassment to the appropriate management officials at your workplace as soon as possible. If you first inform this manager of your situation orally, then you’ll want to follow up this discussion with a written summary that you make sure he or she receives. (Don’t rely solely on email. In addition to emails being deleted or lost, it’s all too easy to deny having received or read an email. Give a hard copy.) On a related note, if the If the situation is serious and/or continues unabated, you want to immediately consult with an attorney and/or contact the EEOC or FEPA.

Shortly after filing your complaint, you should be prepared to meet with management to discuss your situation. He should not refuse to participate in such a meeting, even if it has the prospect of being unpleasant. You have to do everything within reason to allow your company the opportunity to rectify this situation as much as possible. Also, you should be aware that you cannot dictate the terms of how the employer deals with your complaint (for example, terminating the alleged harasser). However, if your employer does not act responsively enough (ie, does not take the necessary steps to stop the harassment), you may raise your inadequate response with your attorney and/or with the EEOC or FEPA.

Keep a private diary or diary that describes what the harasser says or does and what management does in response to your complaint. Additionally, if there are written materials or other documents (eg, sexual emails, pornographic photos) disseminated as part of the underlying harassment, you should make every effort to obtain copies of these materials and keep a copy at home. Notes and documents can be particularly helpful to you and your lawyer if your matter has to go to court.

You also need to prepare for the possibility that management will “back on the bandwagon” after receiving your complaint of harassment. Don’t expect sympathy or compassion from your colleagues, no matter how long or how well you’ve worked with them in the past. If your supervisors and/or co-workers respond with understanding, you should consider their reactions a bonus! Seek emotional support from your network of friends and family outside of the workplace. Don’t expect to receive it at work.

Finally, she must operate at work as “Caesar’s wife.” Having filed a complaint, she wishes to do everything for the book. It doesn’t matter if a laissez faire attitude pervaded the workplace beforehand. For example, if work officially starts at 9:00 a.m., she should do everything in her power to be at her desk or her station by 8:50 a.m. ready to work every day. the days. She wants to strive to make her performance so impeccable that no one in management can “legitimately” cite it as a basis for retaliating against her. In short, she should do everything she can to make sure she doesn’t give the company “any ammunition to shoot her” after filing her sexual harassment claim.

Hopefully, neither you nor your loved ones will have to endure serious sexual harassment at work. However, if you find this abuse, you can take steps to improve the situation and seek remedy. Do not accept abuse. Do not give up. You deserve equal opportunity and an environment free of harassment at work.

Similarly, if you have encountered other difficulties in the workplace, you can effectively seek justice as well. You don’t have to endure abuse in silence. You have rights!