In our entry last week, we discussed some points about quid pro quo harassment and what all it entails. Our California readers probably know by now that we don’t believe in any type of harassment in the workplace. When it comes to quid pro quo harassment, some victims might be wary of speaking up because they fear the consequences. They might fear that they will be retaliated against. They might fear they will lose their job or have to take a pay cut. In all of those cases, the actions are unacceptable.
The laws in California and the federal law have specific protections in place for people who are victims of sexual harassment. No employer or representative of your employer can retaliate against you simply because you complained about sexual harassment. If they do, you have the right to take action regarding the sexual harassment and the retaliation.
When you are the victim of sexual harassment in the workplace, your first step will likely be filing a complaint with the company. This usually involves going to the human resources representative. This might stop the harassment. If it doesn’t stop the harassment, you can look into your options to move your complaints forward.
We don’t want you to think that you don’t have any options or that you should just quietly deal with the harassment. That isn’t ever the case. Instead, you can stand firm to make the harassment stop. We can help you learn about your options if you need to move the case past just making a complaint with the company.