Should sexually harassed individuals hire an attorney to represent them in Dublin Ohio?

Ohio – March 14, 2022

It has been almost fifty years since Cornell Scholars publicly introduced the term “sexual harassment,” shedding light on the widespread problem of negative workplace interaction from employers against women at that time. Claims to fight against the negative behavior became legal under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as workplace discrimination, and more recently in the 2020 Supreme Court of the United States ruling in favor of gay, lesbian, and transgender employee rights from discrimination based on sex.

Ohio Civil Rights Act.

The Ohio Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment based on sex, including sexual harassment. The Act applies to all public employers and private employers with four or more employees. According to regulations issued by the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct constitute sexual harassment when:

• Submission to the conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment,
• Submission to or rejection of the conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual, or
• The conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.

Victims should seek guidance from a sexual harassment attorney in Ohio to address sexual harassment complaints. When determining whether conduct constitutes sexual harassment, the Commission considers all the circumstances, such as the nature of the sexual advances and the context in which the alleged harassment occurred.

Law.

The law addresses sexual harassment in the form of unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature through:

• Quid Pro Quo. Authoritative figures/bosses in the workplace demand, or require sexual acts for preferential treatment, or to avoid punitive action – employment decisions made because an individual has submitted to, or rejected the negative behaviors.
• Hostile Work Environment. A boss, or employer does not remedy a work environment where sexually inappropriate behavior is present, negatively affecting work performance and creating intimidating, hostile and abusive work environments.

When a victim is not protected under Title VII language, a civil rights, personal injury, or employment law attorney at the Law Offices of Emily Lewis may be able to offer another means toward compensation when sexual harassment causes harm and damage to an employee. Skilled attorneys guide legal actions when the work-related incident is one of a civil nature that can be more easily remedied then that of a criminal nature as sexual assault, where unwanted sexual contact using force, coercion, or incapacitation occurs is a criminal offense.

Identify sexual harassment.

1. Uninvited physical contact.
2. Sexual assault.
3. Displaying sexually explicit media, or objects.
4. Intimidation through rude remarks that are gender-related.
5. Offering promotions, special treatment, or limiting advancement and threatening termination based on requests and submission of sexual favors.
6. Understated flirting, or sexually suggestive conversation.

Report.

Victims should inform the harasser that their conduct is unwelcome and insist that it stops void of danger. They should use any employer complaint mechanism, or grievance system available, including complaining to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Positive settlement awards may be the result of strong cases presented by experienced legal counsel.

Employer awareness.

Prevention by employers is the best tool to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace, through clear communication to employees that sexual harassment will not be tolerated, keeping in mind that leadership and workplace culture have a positive impact on the reduction of sexual harassment. It is also unlawful for employers to retaliate against an individual for opposing employment practices that discriminate based on sex, or for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or litigation under Title VII.

Hire a lawyer.

Victims of sexual harassment have legal options against sexual harassment, and seeking legal counsel is the first thing a victim should do after reporting the abuse through the proper channels where the incident took place.

Law Offices of Emily Lewis, LLC

AmeriCenter Office Building

5650 Blazer Parkway
Dublin, OH 43017

(Phone) 614-734-6270
(Fax) 614-734-7270

Sources.

1. https://www.justice.gov/crt/fcs/TitleVI-Overview
2. Rule 4112-5-05 – Ohio Administrative Code | Ohio Laws
3. https://www.eeoc.gov/statutes/title-vii-civil-rights-act-1964