Helpful Legal Information
Sexual Harassment and Wrongful Termination
Sexual harassment is a form of illegal sex discrimination. According to both federal and California law, sexual harassment is a violation of employment discrimination laws. When a supervisor harasses a female employee, for example, he is discriminating against her on the basis of her sex, according to the law. This allows the employee to complain to federal and state agencies charged with enforcing these laws. And if the employee is dissatisfied with the agency's action, she can sue the employer in federal or state court.
Sexual harassment takes different forms. Most people realize that if an employer touches a female employee's breasts, this is sexual harassment; but they think that other demeaning or abusive behavior is permissible. The laws against sexual harassment prohibit any unwelcome sexual conduct or commentary that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.
The following are all examples of illegal sexual harassment:
- Propositioning an employee for dates or sex
- Telling inappropriate sexual jokes or remarks
- Bringing into the workplace pornographic pictures, materials or images on the computer
- Touching an employee inappropriately including, in some cases, hugging, kissing, rubbing against someone, caressing one's shoulders or back, other unwanted physical contact
- Requiring employees to wear certain suggestive clothing
- Gawking or leering at an employee
- Making inappropriate comments about an employee's appearance
- Making statements that women are inferior to men (or vice-versa)
- Attempting to use one's position as a supervisor to obtain an employee's acceptance of sexually inappropriate behavior or an employee's romantic affections
Although it is usually men who sexually harass women, sexual harassment can also include women harassing men, men harassing men, or women harassing women. The perpetrator may be a heterosexual or a homosexual. Sexual harassment occurs whenever someone is subjected to sexually inappropriate behavior on account of one's gender.
Employer Investigations
Be aware that you also have a responsibility to inform your employer of the sexual harassment (i.e.. complain). Doing so is important as the law requires that the employer investigate all claims of sexual harassment and take immediate and appropriate action to remedy the situation. If the employer is not made aware of the sexual harassment, a court may not find them liable for the conduct of their employees. [For more information see Employer Investigation ].
Retaliation and Wrongful Termination
It is Illegal for an Employer to Retaliate Against a Victim of Sexual Harassment. Employers do sometimes retaliate against an employee for raising claims of sexual harassment -- but they do so at their own peril. Retaliation is considered firing, denial of promotions, denial of pay raises, work assignments, denial of leaves of absence or adverse action in almost any other aspect of employment. [for further information on retaliation see Retaliation and Wrongful Termination ]. Any such adverse action taken against an employee within a relatively short time period after the employee makes a complaint of sexual harassment will be considered suspect. This is especially so when the employee is terminated shortly after making the complaint. If it is later found to be retaliation for the complaint, the employer will be subjected to separate liability for violation of federal and state laws - whether the sexual harassment is proven to have occurred or not. An employee has an absolute right to complain about harassment without fear of retaliation by her employer.
Complaining of Sexual Harassment to the Federal and/or State Authorities
Before any lawsuit can be filed against an employer for sexual harassment, an employee must file a complaint with either the federal or state authority charged with investigating such complaints. This is designed to give the employer time to remedy their conduct prior to being sued. In many cases, it is simply a formality that must be taken care of prior to a lawsuit. [For more information, see Complain to State and/or Federal Agency] If you believe you are the victim of sexual harassment and/or wrongful termination, please complete our On-Line Case Submission Form. If your case is accepted for review, one of our lawyers will contact you about your case.
The Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) is the state agency which investigates complaints of violations of state employment discrimination laws. The DFEH has offices throughout the state. Below are the addresses of several DFEH offices in the Northern California/Bay Area:
| DFEH 1330 Broadway, #1326 Oakland, CA (510) 622-2941 |
DFEH 30 Van Ness Ave., #300 San Francisco, CA 94102 (800) 884-1684 |
DFEH 111 No. Market St., #810 San Jose, CA 95113 (408) 277-1277 |
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the federal agency which investigates complaints of violations of federal civil rights law (Title VII) in employment. The EEOC has offices throughout the country. Below are the addresses of several EEOC offices in the Northern California/Bay Area:
| EEOC 901 Market St., #500 San Francisco, CA 94103 (415) 356-5100 |
EEOC 1301 Clay St., #1170 Oakland, CA 94612 (510) 637-3230 |
EEOC 96 N. Third St. Ste. 200 San Jose, Ca. 95112 (408) 291-4231 |
FILING SUIT
If your complaint goes nowhere, You can still Strike Back In Court. The complaint process both within companies and through the federal and state agencies charged to investigate complaints often leaves employees empty-handed and feeling that justice was not done. This is often our law firm's experience when we attempt to get a company or an agency to investigate a case of discrimination. It can be a frustrating and disappointing exercise.
But thankfully the law does give you the right to go to court.
Both Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the state Fair Employment and Housing Act give employees a right to sue an employer for violations of their rights. If violations of the law are shown, the employee's recovery may include the employee's recovery may include his/her past lost wages and benefits, future wage loss, attorneys fees and punitive damages. Punitive damages are calculated in part on the earnings of the company.
If you believe you have taken all the necessary steps and are still unsatisfied with the result, please complete and complete our On-line Case Submission Form.