Steps to Prevent Harassment at Work?

Q. What steps should an employer take to prevent unlawful workplace harassment?

A. The most important step for an employer in preventing harassment is clearly communicating to employees that harassment based on national origin will not be tolerated and that employees who violate the prohibition against harassment will be disciplined, according to the EEOC.

Other important steps include:

* adopting effective and clearly communicated policies and procedures for addressing complaints of national origin harassment, and

* training managers on how to identify and respond effectively to harassment.

By encouraging employees and managers to report harassing conduct at an early stage, the EEOC says employers generally will be able to prevent the conduct from escalating to the point at which it violates Title VII.

Men Protected from Harassment Too?

Q. Are men protected from sex harassment?

A. Yes. Both men and women are protected from workplace harassment on the basis of sex, according to the EEOC.

Off-site harassment?

Q. Does harassment have to occur at work for it to be illegal?

A. No. Federal law protects you from job discrimination and harassment, whether it occurs on or off the work site. For example, you may have a potential claim for sexual harassment if your manager pressures you for dates while at a work-related conference, according to the EEOC.

Allow sexual orientation harassment?

Q. I work in Colorado for a large hotel chain. Recently a co-worker has found out my sexual orientation and has started harassing me. I heard that federal law does not expressly protect workers based on sexual orientation. I don't want this to be an issue at work, and I prefer to keep my private life private. I think my boss knows about this harassment because she has been present when it has happened, but she has done nothing to stop it. Can my boss do that?

A. No. Although federal law does not yet directly protect workers from harassment based on sexual orientation, Colorado law does. Colorado law protects workers from sexual orientation discrimination and harassment and defines "sexual orientation" as a person's orientation toward heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, or transgender status or an employer's perception thereof. But the law does not consider the harassment to be illegal unless you first file a complaint with the appropriate authority at your workplace and the company fails initiate a reasonable investigation and take prompt remedial action if appropriate. Here's the Colorado law: 24-34-402. Discriminatory or unfair employment practices.

Allow harassment by a non-employee?

Q. I work at a Senior Community as a resident assistant. Our community has "neighborhood days," when we allow senior citizens in the neighborhood to visit the residents. "Charles" frequently visits, and he often yells derogatory comments about Asians at me and has even pushed and tripped me on a few occasions. I'm a Filipino American. I have reported the conduct to a manager, she told me that she cannot take any action against Charles because he is not a resident. On subsequent visits, Charles continues to yell ethnic slurs at me, and I filed an EEOC charge. My employer continues to allow Charles to harass me. Can my boss really do that?

A. No. According to the EEOC, under these circumstances, the employer would be liable for the actions of Charles, a non-employee, because it had the power to control Charles's access to the premises, was aware of Charles's offensive conduct, and did not take corrective action.

It would still be up to you to prove that the conduct was severe or pervasive and that you have suffered damages as a result. It is often difficult to quantify monetary damages for hostile work environment, but the law does allow recovery for emotional distress and punitive damages if you can prove them.