In a recent sexual harassment case, an administrative assistant asserted that her company’s response to her complaints of sexual harassment under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act created a hostile work environment. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania disagreed.
In Sheer v. Motorola Inc., E.D. Pa., No. 09-209, an administrative assistant
became friendly with an engineer at Motorola, exchanging social emails
and gifts. The relationship started to decline and the engineer made increasingly
sexual and threatening comments. After the administrative assistant complained
to Motorola, the engineer was investigated, formally punished and had
his duties diminished.
The administrative assistant claimed she was treated differently by co-workers
after the complaint, and she subsequently lost her job a year later after
a reduction in force. She then filed a lawsuit alleging violations of
Title VII as a result of a hostile work environment and
retaliation.
Here, Motorola’s response to the assistant’s claim was in question.
After the administrative assistant complained, Motorola assembled a security
team to investigate, told her to work from home, and provided her with
safety advice.
The court concluded that rather than being discriminatory, these actions
show that company took the woman’s complaint seriously and invested
significant time and resources to resolving the matter quickly and effectively.
The court also stated that if they found the company’s actions to
assist the woman created a “hostile work environment” employers
would be on a ‘razor’s edge’ for fear of liability for
investigating too thoroughly or not investigating at all.
The court also determined that the fact that her job was eliminated nearly one year after the woman complained was not sufficient to show retaliation.
If you believe you have been subject to
sexual harassment, the first thing to do is seek legal advice. Often the employer will have
a policy that requires you to report the harassment to someone in authority.
If you fail to do so, you risk losing your right to pursue a sexual harassment
claim if the conduct persists. Here, the company responded and took actions
to investigate the complaints of harassment. Often, that’s not the
case. Many times when an employee complains of harassment, the employer
does nothing. In situations where a company fails to respond to a complaint,
you have the right to file a sexual harassment charge with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency that investigates all
claims of employment discrimination. The EEOC will then investigate the
charge and require your employer to investigate.
For more information, or if you believe you have been subjected to sexual
harassment at work, please contactBuckley Beal LLP, LLC, a Georgia law firm dedicated to employee’s rights.