Harassment training is essential in order to prevent people from harassing others. If you believe that you have been a victim of harassment or you witness harassment, you should be made aware of the legal implications of reporting the act.
At a minimum, you should understand about harassment training in your workplace. In addition, you should learn about the specific laws and federal statutes that protect you against sexual harassment.
Harassment is considered to be any unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature directed towards a person. This conduct may be based on a person's actual or perceived sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, pregnancy or race. A person who has been subjected to this conduct has the right to report the conduct to an appropriate authority.
A person who suffers harassment can make a claim for harassment under many statutes. These statutes include the Federal Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Act and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Under the law, it is illegal to discriminate in the workplace based on sex, sexual orientation, age, race, national origin, religion, and disability. There are also specific statutes to protect workers from discrimination based on pregnancy and medical conditions.
Harassment training is required of employers by law and by contract if the employer has more than fifteen employees. Employers may not retaliate against an employee who has filed a harassment claim or who has reported harassment.
Employers may not refuse to hire or fire a person for requesting or taking time off during certain times for personal reasons, such as pregnancy or family responsibilities. An employer may not deny an employee benefits due to reported harassment.
It is also illegal to threaten, intimidate, harass, or discriminate against an employee because of a protected characteristic such as religion, sex, disability, pregnancy, race, color, age, national origin, marital status, or veteran status. For example, an employer may not refuse to hire an employee because of the employee's disability or a protected characteristic, such as religion.
A federal law, the Americans with Disabilities Act, guarantees that employers must make their employment and job opportunities available to qualified persons with disabilities. This law prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities and requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodations, if requested by the person with a disability.
Employers are legally obligated to provide their employees with harassment training and other forms of harassment prevention. Failure to provide this training may subject an employer to liability under many federal and state statutes.
Employers may not retaliate against an employee who has filed a harassment claim or who has reported harassment. A reasonable accommodation means an adjustment of an existing situation so that it no longer creates a hostile environment. In the EEOC's (Employment Discrimination Office) definition, a reasonable accommodation is "a modification of a previously established employment practice, or an adjustment of the terms and conditions of an existing employment practice, so that it does not create a hostile or offensive environment."
Common examples of reasonable accommodations are making the office design more friendly to the disabled, providing a workstation that is ergonomically friendly, or providing information about housing, transportation, or other services to persons with disabilities. To find out if your employer is violating the federal prohibition against retaliation, contact the Employment Law Department of the state in which you live.
Harassment can be damaging to a person's ability to perform at his or her best. A person who has been subjected to harassment should know about harassment training and the possible consequences of failing to report the incident.