Despite efforts over the past several decades at both the federal and the state level to eradicate discrimination in the workplace it does still occur at an alarming rate throughout the United States.
Employment discrimination can be based on a number of characteristics such as age, sex, national origin, or race. Sometimes, discrimination can manifest itself as harassment in the workplace.
If you are a worker and you believe you are being harassed at work you may be wondering “ What is the employer’s obligation to prevent harassment in the workplace in Florida? ”
The term “harassment” is used in everyday speech to describe a variety of conduct; however, for purposes of an employment discrimination lawsuit it is important to understand what the law means by “harassment”.
Federal law defines harassment as “unwelcome conduct that is based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information.”
Single acts of harassment, however, do not typically rise to the level required for legal action. For harassment to be illegal, it must be such that:
- Enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of continued employment OR
- The conduct is severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive.
Harassment can be caused by an employer, a co-worker, or even a customer/client.
Because an employer ultimately has the ability to control the conduct of other employees and non-employees on the premises, the law may hold an employer responsible for harassment in the workplace regardless of who is causing the situation.
An employer’s legal exposure depends on the situation.
Federal law hold an employer automatically responsible, or liable, when a supervisor’s conduct causes a negative employment action, such as termination.
In this case, the only way an employer can avoid liability is if both of the following are true:
- The employer reasonably tried to prevent and promptly correct the harassing behavior AND
- The employee unreasonably failed to take advantage of any preventive or corrective opportunities provided by the employer.
An employer may also be held liable for harassment in the workplace as a result of the conduct of non-supervisory employees or anyone else on the premises if the employer “knew, or should have known, about the harassment and failed to take prompt and appropriate corrective action.”
If you believe you are the victim of illegal harassment that your employer may be liable for, contact the experienced Florida employment law attorneys at Celler Legal, P.A.
To learn more, please download our free Victim of Harassment in the Workplace in California here.