Harassment

Harassment is another area of the law that is difficult to understand for the harassers, but not so hard to comprehend on the part of those being harassed.

As with discrimination in the workplace, illegal harassment can be based on not only sex, but also any one or more of the other protected characteristics noted above. Harassment at its core is aggression (of some form) against another person’s mind or body. Put another way, harassment is often about the abuse of power, either physically or the abuse of the power of a person’s position in relation to the individual being harassed.

Unfortunately, harassment happens more often than we would like to think in many workplaces across America. It may take many forms, but most often it is sexual harassment. If you happen to be in a situation where you feel you are being harassed in some manner, speak to an experienced Chicago employee harassment attorney and learn what your rights are.

Sexual harassment is first and foremost a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964), which outlines in specific language that “unwelcome” sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment.

On the other hand, if the advances were welcomed and encouraged, this is another matter. The bottom line in cases of sexual harassment is whether or not the advances and other questionable conduct were “unwelcome” or not. There are some exceptions that apply and it is critical to speak to a skilled attorney to find out what those are.

What does constitute sexual harassment is circumstances where sexual overtures or innuendo are implicitly or explicitly a condition of someone’s getting and keeping a job. Implicit is an important word in these cases, as sexual harassment may be going on in more subtle forms as opposed to being harassed outright with a flat-out demand for favors.

Another category of sexual harassment is the quid pro quo variety – the “this sexual favor for that job” variety. Submitting to or rejecting this conduct by an employer as a basis for making hiring decisions relating to a person is defined as sexual harassment. Most often this is carried out by someone in a position of authority and would relate to hiring, firing, promotions, pay raises and job assignments.

There is also a category called hostile environment harassment which come about as a result of sexual conduct that has the intent or effect of interfering with a person’s performance or creates an offensive, hostile or intimidating workplace. Hostile environment harassment is the broadest and likely the most confusing type of sexual harassment and also involves people who are not in a position of authority. e.g. non-managers

Unfortunately, the results of an Illinois task force study revealed that 90% of all women surveyed felt sexual harassment is a definite problem and close to 70% had been harassed in the workplace. The most common form of harassment took place in the form of suggestive looks, leers and crude remarks.

Stop harassment in its tracks by consulting with us today. At The Coffey Law Office we take the time to listen to your concerns, ask for all the pertinent details and then we operate on an investigate, evaluate and negotiate basis. This means that a Chicago sexual harassment lawyer at The Coffey Law Office, will only charge a one-time, non-refundable fee for assessing the merits of your case.

The fee is based on your financial ability to pay and the extent of the work required to determine if the case is meritorious. This does not necessarily mean that The Coffey Law Office will litigate your case, but it will definitely let you know your legal rights and whether or not you do indeed have grounds to proceed to litigation.

Chicago Employee and Sexual Harassment Attorney

At The Coffey Law Firm we value our clients and deal with them in a no nonsense straightforward manner. We tell them what they need to know to make informed decisions, not what they want to hear. Call us today for some straight talk about your case. We won’t keep you in the dark and promise you the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but we will let you know where you stand legally.