Sexual Harrassment and Stress at Workplace – Employer does not care?
I am working in the accounting firm for 6 years. In the past everyone gets along very well, lately it’s a mess. 6 partners and 4 employees including the secretary. Human right office advised me to write a letter to my employer after I already reported verbally. The partners are closed to this guy, so they never replied to my letter as I requested their response in writing. The secretary is a very religious, but a real lier and bitchy too. They group together watching my hour and said they are looking for a reason to get me fire. I told the truth to my bosses along with the witness of my other colleage. The man and the sec’try always created troubles for us. It’s so stressful for me to be in this office environment. What should I do? I don’t want to quit my job because of these bad people? I present my letter attention to this secretary & cc the HR to prove she lies. No saying hello or goodbye, they are so rude. Partners like them! ’cause their here over 15 yrs. VERY SAD
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If you are in the US, contact the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission and the labor board in your state for assistance.
If there is harrassment going on, you’ve got a lot of work to do as far as proving it. You’ve said a lot, but you’ve not stated anything factual and/or tangible about this so far. Everything above is your opinion, and the quality of writing is so poor, that I’m not sure most people understand what you are saying. Sorry, but I’m just calling it like it is.
There are plenty of jobs out there!!!
The National Organization of Women (NOW) would love to help you andso would EEOC….
Your best course of action is almost certainly to look for a new job, but its also important to understand something about sexual harassment law.
First, if your employer truly only employs 10 people (as opposed to 10 in your location), federal anti-discrimination law will likely not offer you any protection. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 only applies to employers who employ at least 15 people. Your state may have legislation that offers some protection when federal law does not apply. You may also be covered if your firm does any work for the government. Check with an employment attorney in your area.
Second, when Title VII does apply it outlaws harassment based on sex that is “severe or pervasive.” Most of the time when HR people conduct training about sexual harassment, they overstate what is prohibited because they want their employees to be well within the law and not pushing things to the edge of what is legal. You do not say what this guy is doing. Whatever it is, keep good notes. Every night when you go home, take a few minutes to write down what the guy did. Be specific about what he said, who was there (first name and last) and whether or not you reported the incident to anyone in authority.
Third, if your employer has a policy that requires you do report sexual harassment, do it. And be specific. You do this not because you believe you will get a satisfactory response, but so that your employer cannot turn the tables on you later and claim you never told them what was going on.
Fourth, you are angry right now and complaining about a lot of things, some which may be illegal and many which clearly are not. There is no law that requires your employer to provide you with a stress free environment, be honest with you, provide you written responses to your complaints, say “good morning,” or be a good employer. It is not a good practice to spend time complaining about things that are not clearly unlawful to your employer. (Complain away to friends and family.) It weakens your legitimate complaints.
Finally, recognize that your employer’s obligation with regard to addressing sexual harassment is just to stop it. They do not need to keep you apprized of an investigation, or give you any sort of response. They just have to stop the sexual harassment.
Try not to worry about what your employer may do about your employment. Most employers will try to get you to quit, rather than actually fire you. If they do decide to fire you, it will be out of your hands. So, go to work, do the best job you can, keep good notes, and look for other work. There is no reason to stay someplace where you are this unhappy.
If you are terminated or if serious or pervasive sexual harassment persists after you have reported it, you may want to bring a charge of unlawful discrimination–if there is a law that applies to your employer.