Sexual Harassment Attorneys in Burbank
The Law Office of Alisa Goukasian assists victims of sexual harassment in the workplace. We provide legal advice, guidance, and support as you seek justice for the wrongs committed by an employer.
Call 818-242-4601 to schedule your free consultation with a California sexual harassment attorney.
Types of Workplace Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment in the workplace generally falls into one of two categories:
Sexual harassment as part of a “quid pro quo” situation. In a quid pro quo situation, a person must give something to get something. In the workplace, quid pro quo sexual harassment involves unwanted sexual advances or sexual activities as a requirement for employment-related benefits. For example, a supervisor requires an employee to engage in sexual relations with the supervisor as a condition of receiving a promotion.
Sexual harassment in the workplace can also create a hostile work environment. Hostile work environment sexual harassment involves subjecting an employee to harassment because of the employee’s gender, sex, or gender expression. The harassment may involve intimidation, verbal assaults, or other forms of harassment that creates an offensive or hostile work environment.
Examples of sexual harassment in the workplace include, but are not limited to:
Unwanted sexual advances
Unwanted touching
Derogatory slurs, jokes, or comments
Threats to reduce employee benefits or make negative changes to employment unless the employee complies with sexual request
Rude or obscene gestures
Discussion of sexual acts
Offers of employment benefits for sexual favors or acts
Sexually degrading language, graphic comments, or sexually obscene or suggestive messages
Holding Employers Liable for Workplace Sexual Harassment
By law, employers in California have a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. The employer may be held liable for sexual harassment in the workplace if the employer failed to stop sexual harassment. If an employer knew or should have known the sexual harassment was taking place and failed to take appropriate and immediate actions to stop the harassment, the employer is liable for any damages caused by the harassment.
The person who committed sexual harassment can be held personally liable for damages caused by the harassment. However, an employer may be held strictly liable for acts of sexual harassment by the employer or by a supervisor. Strict liability means that the employer is legally responsible for damages caused by sexual harassment even if the employer was not aware of the sexual harassment.
Employer Retaliation and Wrongful Termination Related to Sexual Harassment
The laws governing sexual harassment in the workplace also prohibit employers from taking any actions to retaliate against an employee for reporting sexual harassment. If an employer acts in a negative manner towards an employee or fires an employee for reporting harassment, filing an administrative complaint with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), filing a sexual harassment lawsuit, or taking any other actions to report sexual harassment in the workplace, the employer may be subject to a wrongful termination and/or retaliation claim.
Examples of employer retaliation include, but are not limited to:
Wrongful termination
Transferring an employee to a less desirable position
Increased scrutiny for job performance
Giving a lower job performance rating than is justified
Decreasing salary or hourly rate
Unreasonably denying promotions or bonuses
Making a person’s work environment more difficult
Spreading false rumors and verbal or emotional abuse
Contact the Law Office of Alisa Goukasian for a Free Case Review – No Fee Unless We Win
It can be difficult to report sexual harassment in the workplace. You may be unsure about what you should do. You may be unsure what your legal rights are regarding sexual harassment at work.
We are here to help you. You do not need to face your employer or the legal system alone.
Contact the Law Office of Alisa Goukasian by calling 818-242-4601 to schedule a free consultation with a California sexual harassment lawyer.