At an office party a
colleague throws a lewd gesture at you. You are embarrassed in front of your
co-workers but at the same time you do not know how to react. Unfortunately,
the same person has misbehaved with you on several occasions in the past but
you are still struggling to figure out how to handle the situation.
At that very moment you
may be bewildered with many questions; is this sexual harassment? What do I do to protect myself? Should I report the
incident? Will it impact my career if I report it? Only a sexual harassment
lawyer can answer all your questions and provide legal guidance if you want to
report the incident to the management.
You should not laugh if
off since if you complain later the foolish juvenile who is your colleague will
just say they were just joking and you never said anything so I thought it was
OK. Dean Koontz wrote about this in his Lightning book. In that book the
lunatic sexual harasser stalked and attacked the protagonist in her foster
parent’s home and fortunately lost the battle but it shows you that some people
just do not know when to stop.
What is sexual harassment?
When a person exhibits
unwelcome sexual conduct by brushing against you, passing sexual jokes and
constantly badgering you for sexual favors thereby creating a hostile work
atmosphere, this type of behavior is sexual harassment.
However, all offensive
comments cannot be treated as sexual harassment. To know whether a particular
behavior can be deemed sexual harassment you need to speak with a sexual
harassment lawyer.
If you need legal help
in this regard, this is where you should find it: http://sexual-harassment-lawyers.usattorneys.com/.
Sexual harassment goes back a few millennium so you would think this website
would be intimidated but this website does not have feeling so there is no
worries there. This legal digital tool has the power to match evil that
manifests itself in a variety of ways. If you are having a problem at work or
where you live or where you shop, use this website to find yourself a legal
representative.
When is the time to consult a legal representative?
It is advisable to seek
a legal professionals help before taking any official steps to stop the sexual
harassment. You may be required by your company policy to report the incident
to management or the HR department. But before you do so you must know what
will happen after you report it. If the harasser is your own boss then your legal
representative will help you identify a person who is best equipped to handle
the crisis. Your legal counselor will help you outline a description of the
incident. This is done so that you can report the incident properly to the HR
department and clarify all the doubts with relevant information.
Why is it important to seek help from a legal counselor?
To begin with, a sexual
harassment attorney will show you how to document the incident of harassment and record any discussion on the topic that you had
with your employer.
Secondly, if the harassment
has continued he or she will show you ways to confront the harasser. Thirdly, your legal
representative will tell how you can keep your employer informed in the event
harassment continues unabated. In addition, he or she will help you identify ways
to monitor your employer’s response after you report the incident.
Your employer is
mandated by law to investigate the incident as soon as an incident is reported.
Your lawyer will keep tabs on the progress of the investigation.
The law prevents
employers from retaliating against employees who have complained. But
retaliations do happen in form of termination, disciplinary actions, denial of a well deserved
increment or promotion, and barring
the complainant from office events or important projects. Your legal
representative will determine whether these actions are retaliatory and take
legal measures.
A legal counselor can
also help you file a sexual harassment lawsuit if the harassment has continued even after following
all procedures. This can be done once you have the approval of the Equal
Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC). Your sexual harassment lawyer will
explain the pros and cons of the lawsuit as well.
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