What is workplace harassment?
The harassment definition is behavior that may occur when an employee is treated in an unwanted manner based on certain qualities, which are protected under the law. The qualities protected by federal and California state laws include age, national origin, disability, pregnancy and sexual orientation.
Workplace harassment is neither invited nor provoked by victimized employees. Harassment in the workplace can take many forms, including verbal, physical and visual. Harassment at work may come from fellow employees, supervisors or managers.
If this sounds like the situation you are currently facing at your job, then speak with our Los Angeles harassment lawyers to learn more about your ability to file a workplace harassment lawsuit.
What are examples of workplace harassment?
Discrimination is typically the root of any harassing actions. Common forms of workplace harassment include sexual harassment and racial harassment. However, in many cases, if the harassment is not, or cannot be proven to be based on a quality specifically protected by the employment law, a workplace harassment lawsuit will not be successful.
Workplace harassment laws and sexual harassment laws dictate what kind of behavior is unlawful in the workplace. A Los Angeles employment law attorney can be there to help employees determine if the treatment they received at work qualifies as illegal harassment. In California, if the harassment is based upon your gender, sexual orientation, national origin or other discriminatory characteristics, then it is unlawful. You should reach out to the experienced workplace harassment lawyers at the Los Angeles employment attorneys of Kesluk, Silverstein, Jacob & Morrison, P.C. to discuss your best legal recourse.
Is harassment at work illegal in California?
Several laws make certain types of harassment illegal in California. Under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, workplace harassment that targets an individual for their race, color, national origin, religion or gender is a violation of a civil rights and unlawful. The Americans with Disabilities Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) also govern California employment law. Not only does it protect Los Angeles employees from certain types of harassment by coworkers and employers, it also places liability on employers for failing to prevent or end workplace harassment. This means that under FEHA, harassed employees can file suit against the individual responsible for the harassment. Additionally, they can file suit against the employer for failing to end that harassment.
If you would like more information about your rights under harassment laws, then reach out to an experienced Los Angeles harassment lawyer at the employment law firm of Kesluk, Silverstein, Jacob & Morrison, P.C. today for a free consultation.
What do I do if my employer did not do anything after I filed a harassment complaint?
Your employer has a responsibility to take the necessary actions to provide you with a safe working environment. Furthermore, that includes preventing sexual harassment or other types of workplace harassment. This means that employers must act diligently to address all issues involving harassment brought to their attention. The company must also document all of its measures to correct the harassment situation. What happens if it fails to do so and harassing behavior continues? In these cases, victims of workplace harassment may hold their employers accountable for carelessness in the court of law.
Contact a Los Angeles employment law attorney today for more information about your legal options if your employer failed to remedy harassment in the workplace after you filed a harassment claim.
How does workplace harassment cause a hostile working environment?
Severe harassment can create a hostile workplace. Victims of harassment at work must prove the harassment was not a one-time issue. Instead, you must show it is a larger pattern of harassing behavior. However, employees in California who suffer just one severe incident of workplace harassment may be able to pursue legal action as well, especially if the harassment was quid pro quo or physical in nature.
If you believe you have been the victim of harassment at your place of work, then fill out our confidential employment case review form to speak with an experienced Los Angeles harassment lawyer today.
