Posts Tagged hostile environment

Hostile Environment Harassment Court Cases

Here are example hostile environment sexual harassment court cases. These cases were completed by the EEOC.

Hostile Work Environment

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced a settlement with London International Group, LLC (LIG) in a lawsuit charging the Eufaula-based plant, which manufactures condoms, with subjecting a class of employees to a hostile work environment in which they have been subjected to numerous racially and sexually derogatory cartoons and comments since 1995.

Award:             $625,000 in monetary damages 


EEOC v. Cheap Tickets, et al., Case Number CV-02–7117-WJR (VBKx) alleges that, dating back to 2000; female agents working at Cheap Tickets’ Los Angeles Call Center were subjected to a sexually hostile work environment by their supervisors. Moreover, EEOC says that the woman who filed the initial discrimination charge was subjected to retaliation.

Award:             $1,100,000 in monetary damages 


Gurtz, an electrical subcontractor, and defendant Pickus, a general construction contractor, subjected female workers to a sexually hostile work environment. The complaint alleged that Pickus and Gurtz permitted sexually explicit and offensive graffiti about women in portable toilets and in other areas of the construction site and ignored sexually offensive remarks made to the charging party, a female electrician employed by Gurtz, who was an explicit target of some of the graffiti.

Award:             $50,000 in compensatory damage


In this Title VII suit, the San Francisco District Office alleged that a female charging party and two other female restaurant employees were subjected to physical and verbal sexual harassment by their supervisor. Defendant, a high-end restaurant in Hawaii, took no corrective action despite two of the women’s complaints to the general manager and thus the conduct continued. However, after a complaint by the third woman to corporate headquarters, defendant investigated the matter and fired the supervisor.

Award:             $245,000 in monetary damages


Supermercados Conchita, a supermarket chain in Puerto Rico, subjected charging party to same-sex sexual harassment. The male owner/general manager of the supermarkets subjected charging party (who had been hired as a bagger but was rapidly moved into management) to sexual comments, inappropriate touching, and sexual invitations.

Award:             $142,500 in monetary damages


Don’t end up in a lawsuit — train your supervisors and employees online!  Online Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Courses

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Joking: A Sexual Harassment Matter?

Sexually Themed Jokes

Joking and Sexual HarassmentThe Montana Human Rights Commission has found a hostile environment based solely on off-color jokes and cartoons displayed in the workplace.  None of the jokes were said specifically to the complainant; none referred to her; the cartoons were distributed by men and women alike, apparently once or twice a month over several years; the cartoons weren’t even sexist or misogynistic.  The Commission, however, was not amused.  It concluded that the jokes “ha[d] no humorous value to a reasonable person,” and “offended [complainant] as a woman.”  The Commission ordered the city to pay damages, to “not … permit, tolerate, or condone the sexual harassment of any employee” (apparently including such humor), and to “evaluate on an annual basis the performance of each department head on the basis of the quality and success of their efforts to implement and enforce the antidiscrimination policies.” 39

Read the rest of this entry »

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Sexual Harassment: Sexual Favoritism

Sexual Favoritism is defined as unwanted sexual advances which make an employment benefit contingent upon an exchange of sexual favors. Although not a law unto itself, it matches Federal Quid Pro Quo law (this for that).

This type of harassment can occur when employees, who submit to a manager or supervisor’s sexual demands, are rewarded by that manager or supervisor. It is important to note however, that the wronged party(ies) is not the one who submitted, but those who did not and are denied the benefits of the submission. 

In other words, employees who are otherwise denied raises or promotions may claim that they were penalized by the sexual attention directed at the favored coworkers.

Examples:

Use of Power

  • Using position to request dates, sex, etc.
  • Propositioning an individual
Positive Response Results
  • Preferential treatment, favorable reviews
  • Raise
  • Promotion
  • Paid time off, etc.
Negative Response Results
  • Threats, unfavorable reviews
  • Unreasonable workload
  • Demotion
  • Loss of job

How has the court ruled in these cases? 

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Sexual Harassment: Non Employee Harassment

Non Employee harassmentHarassment by Non-employees is exactly what it sounds like. This is when employees, who are harassed by customers, vendors, temp workers, outside contractors, tec. still retain their rights to a harassment-free workplace. 
 
Liability
Employer may be liable if the harassment is known, has control or could have controlled the actions, and fails to take appropriate, corrective action.
 
NOTE: This is not limited to the employer’s premises. The employer is responsible for sexual harassment that occurs anywhere, such as when employees are visiting, calling upon or working at a customer’s or vendor’s premises.
As an employer, you cannot disregard the situation.  The courts have upheld your responsibility in this area.
 
Remember: an employer must investigate and respond appropriately to the allegation even if it appears trivial or contrived. 
It is also in the employer’s best interest to take some action whether the claim has substance or not.  Document the incident, require additional training, etc.
 

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Sexual Harassment: Hostile Environment

A Hostile Environment occurs when unwelcome sexual conduct ruins an employee’s work environment.
 
When this occurs the behavior or its effect unreasonably interferes with work performance and/or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment either at work or at company-sponsored events. The behavior must be unwelcome and in most cases repeated.
 
Types of sexual harassment includes:
 
Verbal
  • Repeated unwanted requests for dates
  • Discussing personal lives or sexual practices
  • Sexually explicit or degrading words
  • Derogatory nicknames, comments, slurs, innuendos
  • Dirty/sexually explicit jokes or teasing
  • Belittling, name-calling
  • Inappropriate forms of address i.e. honey, sweetie, babe, doll, etc.
  • Suggestive or insulting sounds
  • Whistling, catcalls
  • Graphic/verbal comments about another’s dress or body
  • Encouraging or requiring an employee to wear suggestive clothing
Written
  • Unwanted emails, text messages, love poems, love letters, cards
  • Obscene poems or limericks

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