The rest of the story in sexual harassment cases

The courts and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) have provided reasonably clear guidelines on what an employer must do to avoid liability for sexual harassment. Analysis of an early court decision suggests that an employer must take several steps to avoid liability. First, promulgation...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inReview of business Vol. 15; no. 2; p. 13
Main Authors Anderson, Roger L, Robinson, James W
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York St. John's University 01.01.1993
Subjects
Defamation
Employers
Employment
Guidelines
Human resource management
Litigation
Personnel policies
Prevention
Sexual harassment
Supervisors
Work environment
US
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Summary:The courts and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) have provided reasonably clear guidelines on what an employer must do to avoid liability for sexual harassment. Analysis of an early court decision suggests that an employer must take several steps to avoid liability. First, promulgation of an explicit policy prohibiting sexual harassment is absolutely essential. Related to this step, an employer should create a grievance procedure designed specifically to handle claims of sexual harassment. Finally, it is critical for management to take remedial action as soon as it becomes aware of an alleged incident. Employers must still contend with the possibility that their actions to protect victims of harassment may expose them to legal action by alleged perpetrators. Of particular concern is the possibility that an employer may be open to claims of defamation and, in cases where the alleged perpetrator is fired, wrongful termination. To safeguard against potential liability for defamation, an employer should avoid accusing anyone of wrongdoing until the matter has been investigated thoroughly.
ISSN:0034-6454