What is a hostile workplace? Probably most people have had at least one job that they didn’t like. Everyone has worked with people that they didn’t like. Many people have had at least one boss that they didn’t like. Does that mean that these were all ‘hostile workplaces’? Possibly, but only if something was done that was prohibited by law.
Texas and federal law state that an employee has the right to be protected from harassment. The employee’s ‘protected status’ includes the following:
- Age, sex or gender;
- National origin;
- Disability;
- Race, ethnicity or color;
- Religion.
The law also states that the employee cannot be harassed for exercising certain rights, including:
- The right to unionize or to work with fellow employees to try to improve working conditions;
- The right of a disabled worker to request a reasonable accommodation for the disability;
- The right to take FMLA approved leave;
- The right to bring a discrimination or wage claim without facing retaliation.
What constitutes unlawful harassment? There are three general criteria for unlawful harassment.
- The employer fires, fails to promote or takes some other negative action because of the employee’s ‘protected status’ (age, gender, etc.) or because the employee was lawfully exercising a right (such as joining with co-workers to attempt to form a union).
- If the employee must put up with offensive, disrespectful conduct in order to keep the job, this is harassment. For example, if the boss requires an intimate relationship as the price for continued employment, this is sexual harassment.
- A hostile work environment is created when the employee must tolerate offensive conduct by others based on the employee’s protected status or because the employee exercised their legal right. Such offensive conduct must be severe and pervasive. For example, name-calling based on race would be offensive conduct. A hostile work environment does not have to be based upon management’s offensive conduct, but can be created by the actions of co-workers, contractors, vendors or even customers.
It can be difficult for an employee to determine if they are being subjected to unlawful harassment. The Law Offices of Filteau & Sullivan of Houston, TX is a law firm that understands how workplace harassment can have a devastating effect on someone’s emotional and physical well-being. This Employment Attorney in Houston has 30 years of experience with labor and employment cases. If you believe that you are suffering from unlawful harassment, contact this Employment Attorney in Houston for a free initial consultation.
