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Sexual Harassment Law In California
State and federal laws declare that employees should not be subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace. A lawyer can help those targeted by harassment get relief.
November 12, 2011 /Lifestyle PR News/ -- Sexual harassment in the workplace is prohibited by two types of laws in California: federal law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and state law, the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). Both laws are intended to protect employees from harassment and hostile workplaces.
Sexual Harassment
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines sexual harassment as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other conduct of a sexual nature that "unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment."
The California Supreme Court has defined harassment under FEHA as "conduct outside the scope of necessary job performance, conduct presumably engaged in for personal gratification, because of meanness or bigotry, or for other personal motives."
However, the courts have noted that the FEHA is not a "civility code" and is not designed to rid the workplace of vulgarity. The conduct must go beyond isolated instances of mere vulgarity and bad taste. Indeed, the California Supreme Court has emphasized that "it is the disparate treatment of an employee on the basis of sex -- not the mere discussion of sex or use of vulgar language -- that is the essence of a sexual harassment claim."
Employers' Liability for Sexual Harassment
Employers are required to take "all reasonable steps" to prevent harassment, and if harassment occurs, they may be held liable through a sexual-harassment lawsuit by the harassed employee.
If a supervisor engages in harassing conduct, the employer may be held liable regardless of the employer's knowledge of the harassment. If the harassment is from non-supervisory personnel (including coworkers, vendors and some third parties) the employer may be held liable if it knew or should have known of the harassment. Claims of a hostile work environment are evaluated according to the "totality of the circumstances," and a judge will consider many aspects of the workplace when analyzing the employee's claim.
Recent Developments in the Law
A key point of sexual-harassment cases is proving that the inappropriate behavior was directed at a specific person, and a recent case from a California Court of Appeal, Pantoja v. Anton, expanded the ways in which this point may be proven.
Frequently, "me too" evidence from others who claim they were also harassed by the defendant is not admissible because of the risk that a jury might punish a person for generally bad behavior instead of targeted harassment against a particular person. However, in this case, the judge allowed the "me too" evidence because it tended to show the defendant's anti-female intent.
The Pantoja case is the latest of several that addressed the nuances of sexual-harassment cases. Each case is different, so it is important to contact an experienced sexual harassment lawyer if you feel you have been harassed in your workplace. An attorney can help you understand the steps you should take and your legal options for relief.
Article provided by The Rubin Law Corporation
Visit us at www.stevenrubinlaw.com
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