In California, there are typically two types of sexual harassment claims. The first is commonly referred to as “Hostile Work Environment Sexual Harassment.” The second is commonly referred to as “Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment.”
Sexual Harassment in the workplace does not always look like a manager touching an employee inappropriately. While that typically makes up one of the most obvious forms of sexual harassment in the workplace, an unwelcomed act by a manager or even a co-worker that subjected you to verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that was sufficiently severe or pervasive as to alter your conditions of employment and create an abusive working environment can amount to a Hostile Work Environment Sexual Harassment claim.
Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment occurs when a supervisor or management level employee conditions a term of employment (hiring, promotion, favorable scheduling, job safety, pay raise, etc.) upon submission to unwelcome sexual advances.
When the harasser is a supervisor or manager, the employer is strictly liable for sexual harassment. This means that the employer can be held legally responsible even if it did not know about the sexual harassment. However, when the harasser is a co-worker or an independent contractor, an employer can be liable if it acted negligently; that is, the employer could only be liable if it knew or should have known of the conduct and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action.
If you have been sexually harassed in the workplace, you may be entitled to significant damages for emotional distress, compensation for lost wages, lost career opportunities, and punitive damages if your employer acted with malice, oppression or fraud. Your rights are still protected, and you may still be entitled to damages, even if your employer alleges that you were terminated for performance issues or selected in a layoff or reduction in force.
The content on this website is not legal advice, does not establish an attorney-client relationship, and does not guarantee any particular outcome.
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