Sexual harassment is exceedingly unlawful and unacceptable behavior that is often perpetrate in the workplace. There are laws designed to eliminate this behavior so it cannot be utilized by employers and coworkers to exploit, harass, or belittle any individual based on their gender or gender identity in a place of employment. These regulation also apply to people outside of an organization which means that employers have a commitment to protect employees from sexual harassment from customers and also their vendors. 

Law Mart has a team of sexual harassment lawyers ready to assist if you have encountered sexual harassment in the workplace. Our team comprehend the importance of a safe work environment and the negative impacts that sexual harassment can have on people. So, if you or a loved one has become a victim of sexual harassment, call (310) 689 – 6413 to schedule a consultation today with our sexual harrassment lawyers.

How Can a Sexual Harassment Lawyer Help?

If you have been sexually harassed at work, there are instantaneous steps that you should be initiating to halt the harassment. Contacting our sexual harassment lawyer can help accomadate you with the support you need to successfully fight and win your sexual harassment lawsuit against your employer. Our experienced legal team will help:

• Build a case against the people responsible for or being complicit to sexual harassment
• Collect the right evidence necessary to defend your claims and protect your rights
• Navigate the discovery process and analyze the facts presented
• Either negotiate the best settlement possible or go to trial to fight for your rights

At any length, our sexual harassment attorneys are here to look out for your best interests when no one else will. We stand every step with our clients and ensure that they have the best chance of possibly winning their sexual harassment claims against those that will use their power, resources, and influence to brush your complaints under the curtain.

Why Choose a Law Mart Attorney?

No Win No Fee Policy

At Law Mart, we have a No Win No Fee guarantee. You don’t pay us anything if we don’t win your case.

Proven Track Record

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Experienced Racial Discrimination in the Workplace Attorneys

Our highly skilled and accomplished lawyers have over two decades of experience among them and are thoroughly dedicated to victims of racial discrimination in the workplace.

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Our racial discrimination attorneys serve Southern & Northern California and have been given the highest ratings as seen in Yelp, AVVO, Google, and alike. Direct communication and superior customer service is what our firm is known for.

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What Accounts For Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?

Sexual harassment is a comprehensive term that can cover a mass of different scenarios that do not necessarily have to involve sexual acts. While it is defined  by unwelcomed sexual advances like asking for sexual favors and other unacceptable physical exposure, sexual harassment can also include teasing, bullying, intimidating, and using offensive language directly and indirectly that centers around an individuals’ sex, gender identity, or preference.

The primary types of sexual harassment usually fall in one of these 2 components:

• Hostile Work Environment: This generally occurs when a coworker or supervisor has conducted themselves in a way that is inappropriate for work which then creates a work environment that is no longer a comfortable or safe space. This qualifies the place of employment as hostile since it is either intimidating, threatening, or abusive for certain employees to be there.
• Quid pro quo: Quid pro quo means “this for that” and is a kind of sexual harassment that occurs when the end results of a decision that impacts an individual is dependent on whether that person commits a sexual act. This type of harassment can be either stated or implicit and the person making the request can hold inaction against the person in a way that adversely impacts the individual’s employment status or the status of promotion, raise, or other benefit at work.

Samples of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

There is a plenty examples of sexual harassment and usually fall into one of the following components:

• Unwanted sexual advances, invitations, or conversations
• Displaying pictures or objects that display sexual content or content of a sexually provocative nature
• Inappropriate staring or making inappropriate sexual gestures towards another
• Making lewd or degrading statements or jokes about an individuals’ body, appearance, sexuality, sex, gender identification, or sexual activity
• Unwanted physical contact including inappropriate touching and impeding someone from doing their job by physically blocking them from moving
• Offering raises, promotions, time off, or any other benefit in exchange for sexual acts as a condition
• Sexist comments create hostile work environments which are also classified as sexual harassment
• Retaliation for refusing unwanted advances

Laws Opposed To Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

There are a couple laws designed to help mitigate sexual harassment in the workplace. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the federal law that was implemented to help govern sexual harassment claims. In addition to the federal regulations, each state offers its own form of protection against sexual harassment with California’s laws being some of the most comprehensive in the US. The California Fair Employment and Housing Act allows any individual to pursue a sexual harassment claim against any employer, regardless of number of employees. This is a slight improvement from the federal regulations that limit sexual harassment protections to companies with at least 15 employees.

Even with these laws in place, sexual harassment still happens occasionally st work. A few important things to note about sexual harassment in the workplace:

• California law protect individuals who are victims of or witnesses to sexual harassment from retaliation
• Sexual harassment can happen without sexual motivation and sometimes is motivated by control and power
• Sexual harassment can happen to and be committed by both genders

These considerations are all important when determining what falls under what would be considered sexual harassment.

Have You Experienced Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?

Occasionally sexual harassment claims are a clear-cut case that are easily deciphered, but from time to time it can be more complex to determine because sexual harassment can come in many subtle configurations. Sexual harassment can also be very difficult to define because it is dependent on performance that is unwelcomed and sometimes that line can convey which makes what was once accepted conduct now inappropriate and unacceptable.

Generally speaking, you can presume you have been the victim of sexual harassment if you have been exposed to or experienced the following categories:

• You were propositioned with a raise or being upgraded for promotion that was contingent on performing sexual conduct.
• You are forced to listen to inappropriate content, jokes, or conversations that are offensive to you at the workplace.
• You at all times deal with unwanted advances, requests for sexual favors or dates, inappropriate touching, or uncomfortable staring, whether directly or indirectly.
• You are exposed to offensive content being displayed in common areas of your workplace.
• You have unfortunately been experiencing harassment that focuses on your gender, sex, orientation, body, hair, or appearance.

What Can You Do If You Are a Victim of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?

In order to effectively protect your rights as an employee, you must:

Make it Extremely Clear to Aggressors That Advances are Unwelcomed

Sexual harassment is established on the premise that advances are unwanted. If the argument could be rendered that any advances were potentially welcomed, then a case will become more difficult to demonstrate. It is vital that all unwelcome advances or conduct are clearly identified as such and any unwanted actions committed by the perpetrator should be stopped from the get go start. This should make it explicitly clear to the individual that their actions are unacceptable and must halt.

Collect Evidence

It is crucial to make sure to document everything and keep a record of events that happened. This incident log should include times, dates, witnesses, and parties participating in addition to who the incident was reported to, and actions rendered. Furthermore, be sure to keep any written evidence of texts, emails, and other correlation that may support your sexual harassment claim at work. This includes the employee handbook, revised agreements,  performance reviews, and any other evidence that will help illustrate any discrimination or retaliation that has happened. However, if in the event something was verbally communicated to you, try and get the incriminating information established in an email or text message that can be used to support your case. Additionally, be sure to keep a backup of this evidence to ensure that you can provide it to your sexual harassment lawyers in enhancing your claim.

File a Formal Complaint with Your Employer

Employers will always have their own internal processes in place to deal with sexual harassment so be sure to give your employers an opportunity to address the concerns appropriately. If your company does not live up to their obligation to accommodate a safe working environment which is free of sexual harassment, then additional steps can be initiated that circumvent their inaction and will force a company to act accordingly.

Keep Records

Once a formal complaint has been filed, it is important to make sure to keep track of all communications that are relevant to that complaint. This will help the victim ensure that steps are being commenced to resolve the issue correctly.

Don’t Quit

Quitting before reporting sexual harassment makes the claim more complex to win because it does not give the employer an opportunity to resolve the concern. While it can be strenuous to continue dealing with, sexual harassment can generally be eliminated internally if the right steps are initiated. Giving your employer a chance to remedy the condition could solve the problem and if not, it will increase the probability that your case will be won for the damages rendered by your employer.

Contact a Sexual Harassment Attorney Today

It is imperative to the success of your sexual harassment claim that you speak with an experienced sexual harassment attorney at Law Mart. Our sexual harassment lawyers in Southern and Northern California can provide guidance to ensure that you are taking the right steps to ensure that your employment rights are safe gaurded.

Employer Liability When Sexual Harassment Happens

California law distinctly states that employers are liable for the actions of their employees when it comes to sexual harassment at the workplace. Employers have an obligation to ensure that they are providing a safe environment for their employees to work. This generally results in coarse of actions that are implemented company wise that are designed to mitigate sexual harassment.

When sexual harassment is perpetrated by a coworker, vendor, customer, subcontractor, or any other party at the workplace, a formal complaint generally needs to be made to hold employers responsible. This informs employers about sexual harassment that is happening so they can take steps to halt such conducts. If however the  complaint is not made and there was no other way for a manager to know of any sexual harassment, liability can be defended in opposition to. 

When sexual harassment is perpetrated by a supervisor, manager, or other person in power, they are held to a standard of “strict liability.” This holds onto the employer liable plain and simple and does not require a formal complaint. An employer also can’t take crucial steps to remedy the situation to put a stop to liability as individuals at the management level are held to a much higher standard. This is because businesses in California with 50 or more employees are required by law to provide sexual harassment training to all supervisors every 2 years in their course of duration.

This training is designed to inform upper management of:

• What is sexual harassment?
• Policies implemented to combat sexual harassment in the workplace
• Obligations of management when dealing with sexual harassment
• How to prevent / correct sexual harassment in the workplace
• How to respond to formal sexual harassment complaints

How Do You Announce Workplace Sexual Harassment At Your Workplace?

There are multiple ways that sexual harassment in the workplace can be reported. The procedure of reporting is usually dependent on the severity and nature of the complaint rendered.

Your Employer

Majority of thre times,  all companies have some clear procedure in place for dealing with sexual harassment. This information can usually be found in the employee handbook that is issued during the hiring process. This information will typically direct you towards filing a formal complaint with your management. If your management is the person committing the sexual harassment, a complaint can be filed with Human Resource Department to supersede the formal chain of command.

Your Union

In the event a formal complaint to your employer or HR goes disregarded, you can bring the claim to the attention of your union representative who can act as a mediator between you and your employer. It is a union’s job to protect you and your rights to a safe workplace.

Law Enforcement

In the most severe events of sexual harassment law enforcement should and must be involved. Under such circumstances that exceed the bounds of harassment and move into more serious criminal charges like sexual assault or rape, the police should be alerted, and criminal charges should be filed against that party.

What Do You Do If Your Employer Disregards a Sexual Harassment Claim?

Once a formal complaint has been issued with your employer, it becomes their obligation and duty to try and resolve the concern in a way that fixes the workplace to a safe environment that is free of sexual harassment. Employers are in control of for investigating any claims of sexual harassment and if sexual harassment has been proven, then remedial actions are required to prevent liability from falling on the employer.

Sexual harassment claims often go ignored due to the fact of:

• The employer refuses to investigate the claim or does not take the complaint seriously
• The perpetrator is a high performing individual who has infractions overlooked

If a sexual harassment claim goes ignored and disregarded, a sexual harassment attorney should be enlisted to help build a case.

How To File a Sexual Harassment Complaint with the EEOC

Under the State of California and federal law, an EEOC complaint must be filed with a state or local agency before filing a lawsuit for sexual harassment. Having an experienced sexual harassment attorney can assist to ensure that deadlines are met correctly. Once a complaint is issued, the EEOC will investigate the case and rectify if sexual harassment happened. If there is cause, the complaint will result in the EEOC taking action and attempting to remedy the issue with the employer. A personal sexual harassment lawsuit can be filed following the investigation regardless of the results of the EEOC investigation. Once notice of right-to-sue is given to an individual by the EEOC, they have 90 days to file a lawsuit for sexual harassment in the workplace. At this point, the sexual harassment lawyer will help negotiate a settlement or proceed to court to ensure the best possible results for your claim is rendered.

How Much Compensation Can I Receive in a Sexual Harassment Lawsuit?

Being a victim of sexual harassment can cause multiple issues that may entitle the victim to compensation. The amount of compensation received generally is in contigent on the type and severity of harm that resulted from the sexual harassment. You may be entitled to:

• Back Pay: This compensation may cover any pay that may have been lost due to sexual harassment which includes raises, benefits, and commissions that frequently would have earned from the point of sexual harassment to the time of settlement or court victory. If you left your job due to a hostile work environment, your position may also be reinstated if it is available.
• Compensatory Damages: Further damages can be rewarded for physical and emotional injuries endured. The recovery would also include damage to your reputation and any out of expenses that were sustained because of the sexual harassment. These costs often include therapy, medical bills, pharmaceuticals, and misc. expenses related to a job search or being unemployed due to that fact.
• Punitive Damages: In critical cases of sexual harassment, punitive damages may be granted. This is outlined to punish particularly inappropriate behavior to deter future incidents from happening again in the workplace.
• Attorney’s Fees: Miscellaneous admin costs related to the sexual harassment lawsuit will need to be covered and can usually be included in sexual harassment compensation.

When to Contact a Mesriani Law Group

If you or a loved one have been the victim of sexual harassment at your workplace, call  Law Mart today. Our team of experienced sexual harassment attorneys in Southern California and Northern California will ensure you have the best chances of getting the remedy you deserve. Our sexual harrassment attorneys will fight for your rights to work in an environment free from sexual harassment so if you would like to know more, contact us at (310) 689-6413 to schedule a consultation.