Workplace Sexual Harassment Attorney in Tallahassee, FL

Many employers will take appropriate action when they receive complaints of sexual harassment in the workplace. This may range from having the perpetrator undergo remedial training and issue an apology to reassigning or terminating a wrongdoer. When an employer fails to take proper action, a legal response and stiffer penalties may be warranted.

If a sexual harassment complaint is handled by the Florida Commission on Human Relations (FCHR) or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), either agency might issue an order that requires the employer to change their policy and pay damages to the harassed employee. Either agency may also allow a civil lawsuit, which could result in a negotiated settlement or a jury award for additional damages. It is also possible that media coverage of a federal lawsuit and trial for sexual harassment would damage the reputations of the defendant company and/or individual perpetrator(s). Meanwhile, it is illegal to retaliate against anyone who complains of sexual harassment or participates in the investigation of a complaint. Acts such as firing, demoting, or denying such an employee pay, benefits, promotions, etc., could lead to additional charges in a lawsuit and additional damages warranted.

If you are subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace, document what happened by writing down your account, keeping all documents or electronic or hard copies of the offending materials, enlisting the cooperation of witnesses, and making a formal complaint to your supervisor or your company’s human resources/personnel office or officer. Follow procedures in your company’s personnel policy as closely as possible. If at any point you feel that your complaint is not being sufficiently handled or anyone pushes back or takes steps to punish you, you should consult a lawyer immediately. Most employers do not want sexual harassment in their workplace and will deal with complaints promptly and correctly, including by firing bad actors. But if your employer will not hear you and help you, an employment law attorney will.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Florida Commission on Human Relations (FCHR) enforce certain civil rights in the U.S. and the state of Florida, respectively. The actions of the EEOC take precedence among the two agencies, and the federal agency may take over a case from the FCHR.

Generally, each agency will work first to verify a complaint and then attempt to mediate a resolution between the two sides. Mediation may include restitution to the discrimination victim and the company’s pledge to end improper behavior. If mediation is unsuccessful, either agency will conduct a formal investigation to determine whether the law has been broken. Both agencies have the authority to sue an employer over civil rights violations but typically will not unless they uncover long-term or systemic discrimination that has harmed numerous people. The EEOC or FCHR complaint process often ends with the agency providing the complainant with a Notice of Right to Sue.

An employee subjected to illegal sexual harassment in the workplace may hold the harasser(s) accountable through federal lawsuits demanding compensation for the harm they suffered. In such a lawsuit, the employee must be able to establish a link between the sexual harassment and an adverse tangible employment action (such as being denied a promotion), or they must prove the harassing conduct was so severe and pervasive that it constituted a hostile work environment.

However, before a lawsuit may be filed, an employee generally must follow the company’s sexual harassment complaint procedures in a timely manner, which typically means reporting the harassment and participating in an investigation. Also, Florida law requires the employee to file a complaint with either the Florida Commission on Human Relations (FCHR) or the EEOC, which will investigate and attempt to settle the case, potentially with compensation paid to the employee. If the agency’s proposed settlement is insufficient, it will typically close the investigation by giving the employee notice of their right to pursue a lawsuit.

All Florida employers with 15 or more employees should have written policies that explain and prohibit sexual harassment in the workplace, provide a process for reporting and investigating sexual harassment allegations, and define punishments for engaging in sexual harassment. The policy should be provided to new employees in writing and include a requirement for the employee to acknowledge reading and understanding the policy. The employer should also designate a qualified employee (or position, such as human resources director) responsible for investigating and resolving sexual harassment allegations.

On a day-to-day basis, all supervisors and managers are responsible for acting on the employer’s behalf to report sexual harassment or harassment allegations to the designated individual. Employers should ensure immediate investigation of all sexual harassment allegations and that no one who reports sexual harassment or cooperates with an investigation faces retaliation. Employers should also fully cooperate with an investigation of sexual harassment in their workplace conducted by the Florida Commission on Human Relations (FCHR) and/or the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Here are four frequently seen scenarios that could be reported as sexual harassment:

• Unwanted physical contact – It is wrong to touch someone in a sexual nature without their permission. This includes hugging, kissing, patting, pinching, grabbing, groping, stroking, rubbing against, etc. Such acts may rise to the level of sexual assault, a criminal charge. It is not unusual for co-workers to become close and occasionally hug one another in a collegial, nonsexual manner. However, if an employee makes it known that they do not want to be hugged, additional hugs could be considered sexual harassment.
• Unwelcome sexual demands –This is the typical quid pro quo sexual harassment: an employer tells an employee or a job applicant that good things will happen for them (e.g., hiring, promotion, a raise, desired assignments, etc.) if they agree to the employer’s request for a sexual favor, such as a date or intimate encounter. In some cases, the sexual demand comes with a threat, such as termination, demotion, or withholding of rewards or benefits.
• Ongoing sexual jokes and language – Frequent use of sexually explicit language, jokes, comments, noises, or gestures in the workplace can create a hostile work environment. This includes sharing such material verbally, tangibly (such as on bulletin boards), and electronically (e.g., email, texts, online conference platforms, etc.).
• Inappropriate conduct based on gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation – Rude, disparaging, demeaning, or humiliating questions or remarks based on another employee’s gender, gender identity, or sexual identity are out of bounds. This type of behavior can create a hostile work environment for not just the target of the comments but anyone who feels offended or intimidated.

Under federal law, sexual harassment is harassment of any person that is based on that person’s sex, gender, or gender identity. Any unwelcome sexual conduct in the workplace may be considered a violation of the law.

Often, sexual harassment is unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature. But the nature of the harassment does not have to be sexual. It is also illegal to harass a woman by making offensive comments about women in general. It is likewise unlawful to harass a man by making offensive comments about men.

The activity must also rise to the level of harassment to be illegal. Simple teasing, offhand comments, and isolated incidents that are not very serious are not harassment.

Illegal harassment in the workplace is conduct that:

• Is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile work environment. This means the conduct unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance or creates a working environment that a reasonable person would find to be intimidating, hostile, or offensive, or;
• Demands a quid pro quo (a favor for a favor), which, if not met, results in an adverse employment decision, such as the victim:
• Being fired or demoted
• Not being hired
• Not being provided compensation or benefits they qualify to receive.