About Employee Verbal Harassment Law

Verbal harassment in the workplace is defined as a display of hostility towards a worker, such as any attempt to intimidate or humiliate a worker using insults. Verbal harassment may or may not form a part of a wider pattern of discrimination based on age, gender or racial differences.

The legal definition of harassment

For behavior to be legally considered harassment, it usually has to be repetitive behavior. Behaviors that may constitute harassment include verbal insults, threats, mockery, inappropriate sexual comments directed at a particular employee and repeated inquiries into an individual's personal life. It should be noted that isolated incidents of teasing are not usually considered harassment. The recommended method of handling this is to ask the person perpetrating the harassment to stop doing it. If the pattern persists after taking that step, then the victim will want to begin documenting each event as it occurs. The third step is for the victim to notify their supervisor of the harassment. If the workplace has a specific staff member or department for the purpose of handling employee problems, the complaint may be taken to them.

The legal remedy for verbal harassment

The Civil Rights Act seeks to protect workers from all forms of discrimination related to their age, race, or gender. Discrimination includes verbal harassment. The Equal Employment Opportunities Commission enforces the Civil Rights Act and is the body set up to handle all complaints of discrimination on behalf of the Federal Government. For verbal harassment to become a legal issue, the victim must be able to prove that their workplace has become a "hostile environment" or that the harassment has affected their position with their employer. A person who has had their pay cut as a part of being harassed or because they complained about harassment would fall into this category. The victim must also file a complaint with the EEOC who will then investigate the charge, and if they find in favor of the complainant, they may sue on their behalf.