Hostile work environment laws were created to protect people belonging to certain groups or who are involved in certain protected activities from inappropriate behavior by employers on the basis of their protected class or activities. These laws can be complicated, however, so it is important to know your rights.
Function
There is no single hostile work environment law, but rather there are a set of laws protecting employees from discrimination on the basis of belonging to a protected class. This can include the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act or the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. In order to constitute a hostile work environment, the improper actions of the employer must be persistent, and tolerating those actions must become a condition of your continued employment.
Sexual Harassment
One of the most common complaints leading to a hostile work environment pertain to sexual harassment. Behavior constituting sexual harassment can include inappropriate remarks of a sexual nature, any kind of inappropriate touching in the workplace, an employer promising professional advancement for sexual favors or any other offensive behavior of a sexual nature.
Discrimination
Discrimination, as it relates to hostile work environment laws, covers the majority of hostile work environment law suits and complaints. This would include discrimination based on a person's race, age (people over 40 are protected by federal law), pregnancy, gender, disability, nationality or religious membership. This can include inappropriate jokes or comments that are not sexual in nature, termination of employment, demotion or being passed up for promotion because of the person's protected class.
Retaliation
When an employer attempts to adversely impact an employee because of some action on the part of that employee, it is called retaliation. Motivations for retaliation can vary widely, but some of the most common motivations include an employee filing complaints about work conditions or reporting a company to some government agency because of violations of state or federal law. The ways employers retaliate can also vary, such as building a file on an employee in order to get that person fired or making workplace conditions intolerable in order to force an employee to quit.
Solutions
The way you respond to a hostile work environment is very important in determining how you can remedy the problem. It is important to continue to be a good employee despite hostile conditions, in order to avoid giving the employer a reason to fire you or alternative reasons for improper behavior. If you think your workplace is a hostile work environment, the first thing you should do is file a complaint with your company's human resources department or any relevant government agencies. If the problem persists, you will have a much better case should you decide to take legal action.
