Harassment in the Workplace Attorney in New Jersey, New Jersey
What are examples of harassment based on protected characteristics other than sex?
What are examples of harassment based on protected characteristics other than sex?
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i feel like harassment is one of
the areas of employment law that is most
misunderstood by the public harassment
is also known by the phrase hostile work
environment and people have the
perception that if their supervisor is
uh nasty is abusive is unpleasant you
know is hostile in the general sense
that that’s unlawful unfortunately
that’s not true for there to be unlawful
harassment or an unlawful hostile work
environment the employee has to be
targeted because of a protected
characteristic under the
anti-discrimination laws or because of a
protected activity under the anti-
retaliation laws so most commonly we’re
dealing with cases of sexual harassment
or a hostile work environment based on
sex or gender but it’s not limited to
that that’s the area that the public is
most aware of because it’s been
discussed most often in the news in
movies and books but there can be a
hostile work environment based on
somebody’s race there can be a hostile
work environment based on somebody’s
religion there can be a hostile work
environment based on somebody’s
disability there can also be a hostile
work environment based on a protected
activity you know for example if the
employee has blown the
whistle on conduct that violates for
example uh SEC regulations in the
finance industry or uh FDA regulations
in the pharmaceutical industry if
they’re then not subject to an outright
um adverse employment action like firing
or demotion or suspension but instead
you know they’re being made to work
longer hours they’re being given the
less desirable able assignments they’re
being ostracized by their supervisor and
their co-workers treated differently in
the terms and conditions of employment
that’s what would be harassment or a
hostile work environment and so in
general terms regardless of the type of
protected characteristic that you’re
dealing with the harassment or hostile
work environment has to be targeted at
the employee because of the employees
legally protected characteristic under
the anti-discrimination laws for example
race
the way that they’re being treated has
to be either severe or pervasive so
severe could mean one incident that’s
really bad so here in New Jersey we had
a case that went up to the New Jersey
Supreme Court in which um a county
sheriff referred to a black sheriff’s
officer to her face in front of other
people by a racial epithet and the
racial epithet was serious enough that
the court said that one incident
standing alone because it was coming
from what amounted to the CEO for that
workplace the the sheriff who’s elected
by the county residents that that was
bad enough that that state alone was
severe enough to create a hostile work
environment by itself the other
possibility is that the conduct is
pervasive so that means it’s happening
every day or almost every day maybe the
things aren’t as
serious but it’s constant um and so it
has to be severe or pervasive enough
that a reasonable person of the same
legally protected characteristic as the
employee would feel like the terms and
conditions of employment were changed so
in the case of a race discriminate uh
rather rather a race harassment claim
brought by a black plaintiff you know
the question would be would a reasonable
black person find the terms and
conditions of employment to have been
changed in a negative way based on that
type of harassment
Morristown, NJ employment law attorney Chris Lenzo talks about examples of harassment based on protected characteristics other than sex.
