Harassment

Definition

Harassment refers to unwelcome conduct or behavior that is offensive, intimidating, or hostile, and creates a hostile work environment for the target. It can take many forms, including verbal, physical, or visual, and is often based on a protected characteristic such as race, gender, religion, or disability.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. Harassment can create a hostile work environment that interferes with an employee's ability to perform their job duties.
2. Employers have a legal obligation to prevent and address harassment in the workplace, regardless of whether the harassment is perpetrated by a supervisor, coworker, or third party.
3. Harassment can take many forms, including verbal (e.g., slurs, jokes, insults), physical (e.g., unwanted touching, assault), or visual (e.g., offensive posters, emails, social media posts).
4. Quid pro quo harassment occurs when employment decisions are made based on an employee's submission to or rejection of unwelcome conduct.
5. Employees who experience harassment may be entitled to legal remedies, including compensation for lost wages, emotional distress, and punitive damages.

Review Questions

• Explain the concept of a hostile work environment and how it relates to harassment.
  • A hostile work environment is created when harassment is sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the conditions of the victim's employment and create an abusive working environment. Harassment that leads to a hostile work environment can take many forms, including verbal, physical, or visual, and is often based on a protected characteristic such as race, gender, or disability. Employers have a legal obligation to prevent and address harassment in the workplace, as it can interfere with an employee's ability to perform their job duties and create a work environment that is intimidating, hostile, or offensive.
• Describe the difference between hostile work environment harassment and quid pro quo harassment.
  • Hostile work environment harassment refers to a work environment that is permeated with discriminatory intimidation, ridicule, and insult, which is sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the conditions of the victim's employment and create an abusive working environment. In contrast, quid pro quo harassment occurs when employment decisions, such as hiring, firing, promotion, or compensation, are made based on an employee's submission to or rejection of unwelcome conduct. While both types of harassment are illegal, they differ in the way the harassment is perpetrated and the impact it has on the victim's employment.
• Analyze the role of protected characteristics in determining whether conduct constitutes harassment, and the legal implications for employers.
  • Harassment is often based on a protected characteristic, such as race, gender, religion, or disability, which are attributes or characteristics that are protected by anti-discrimination laws. The presence of a protected characteristic is a key factor in determining whether conduct constitutes harassment, as the law prohibits harassment that is directed at individuals based on these protected characteristics. Employers have a legal obligation to prevent and address harassment in the workplace, regardless of whether the harassment is perpetrated by a supervisor, coworker, or third party. Failure to do so can result in legal consequences, including compensation for lost wages, emotional distress, and punitive damages for the victims of harassment.

Related terms

Hostile Work Environment: A work environment that is permeated with discriminatory intimidation, ridicule, and insult, which is sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the conditions of the victim's employment and create an abusive working environment.

Quid Pro Quo Harassment: A type of harassment where submission to or rejection of unwelcome conduct is used as the basis for employment decisions, such as hiring, firing, promotion, or compensation.

Protected Characteristics: Attributes or characteristics that are protected by anti-discrimination laws, such as race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, and sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation).