You-Too? Sexual Harassment - You Don’t Have to Take it Lying Down
Today Roseanne
was cancelled because of a horrific racist tweet. Actors and politicians are being brought down
due to their treatment of women in the workplace. Our culture is moving towards zero tolerance
of disrespect, and if you’ve been a victim, it’s time to speak up.
If you have been
a victim of sexual harassment in the workplace, it might be easier to tell your
story to a woman attorney. It’s
embarrassing to talk about sexual advances or touching’s at work. Nobody should have their economic futures at
risk due to co-worker’s improper behavior.
No woman should ever have to choose between her dignity and her job.
I worked as a
teaching assistant for Civil Rights Attorney Haywood Burns and at the (Equal
Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC) during law school, developing a solid
foundation in Sexual
Harassment law at my Personal Injury law firm Wittenstein & Wittenstein
in Forest Hills. Clients come to us
from all over New York City (Queens, The Bronx, Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten
Island) and from Nassau County, Long Island with their sexual harassment cases.
Is your boss
asking you out and changing your schedule for the worse when you refuse? That’s sexual harassment! Is your supervisor constantly “complimenting”
how nice your legs are in front of your colleagues? That’s sexual harassment. Both of these things happened to me when I
was in my twenties, but back then there wasn’t much you could do about it. Even though there were causes of action on
the books, lawyers wouldn’t take these cases and women just had to put up with
these “minor” indignities.
As a Personal Injury Attorney in Forest Hills at Wittenstein & Wittenstein, I can examine
the facts of your case and determine whether you have a case that is
actionable. It would be frivolous to bring
a lawsuit for sexual harassment just because your boss asks you out once. If there is an unwanted advance at your
workplace, immediately report it to Human Resources or the highest level of
management. This is usually enough to
stop the problem as businesses are well aware of sexual harassment
lawsuits. If the problem stops with one
advance, there is not enough “damage,” to bring an action.
On the other
hand, if Human Resources or management does not take any action to stop the
harassment, they can be held liable for allowing a “hostile work environment”
to exist. If you are told by management
that “it’s not big deal,” or “grow up,” you should call an attorney
immediately. A claim for sexual
harassment is not against the person at issue with the bad behavior - it’s
against the employer for allowing this condition to exist at their company.
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