What Should I Do If I Was Sexually Harassed At Work In California?

The first thing that you should do if you were sexually harassed at work is call a lawyer. An experienced lawyer can help you avoid the mistakes people commonly make that can damage or destroy their cases.

This may go against the advice you will find on other attorneys’ websites. I have seen time and again where other attorneys suggest that you should file reports with human resources and with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). However, if you take these steps without the guidance of an attorney, you are more likely to make mistakes or fall prey to some common traps.

Early Errors Can Cost You Dearly

California has some of the nation’s best protections for employees. California’s laws make employers automatically liable for any sexual harassment from a supervisor or manager. You may also have a strong case in California if your co-worker sexually harassed you and your boss knew about it but failed to take the appropriate action.

The problem is that to benefit from the protections provided the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) or EEC, you need to know how to take full advantage of them. It also helps to know where to report your complaint. Filing a complaint with your human resources department is not the same as filing with the EEOC or the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). Simply filing in the wrong place or with the wrong language can hurt your case, and that can be a daunting idea when you’re dealing with a deeply personal and stressful situation.

If you’re thinking about filing a sexual harassment claim, you are likely new to the process and a bit intimidated by it. Most people who decide to file a claim have never done anything like this in their lives. On the other hand, your employer’s human resources professionals deal with these claims all the time, and they know how to spot the mistakes and weaknesses that can hurt your case.

Some of the common mistakes include:

•      Using the wrong language
•      Failing to include all the important details
•      Sending work emails or texts that can compromise your case
•      Accepting invitations to work-related social gatherings that may include your harasser
•      Quitting your job at the wrong time
•      Failing to invoke your protection from retaliation

This last point is particularly important. As a sexual harassment victim, you have the right to report the harassment. If your employer then retaliates against you because of this complaint, that retaliation is illegal. However, too many people hold back with their initial complaints.

Employees often feel scared and uncomfortable when they report the harassment, and they may tell their human resources something like, “John is making me feel uncomfortable.” The problem here is that this is not a clear report of sexual harassment. It does not invoke your legal protections, and your employer may find some reason to let you go. To take advantage of your full protection from retaliation, you need to make it clear that your complaint is about sexual harassment.

You Want Someone On Your Side

Another reason you want to contact an attorney right away is that you want someone who you know is on your side. Most attorneys offer free consultations and work on a contingency basis. This means that you can expect an attorney to hear your story and give you an evaluation of your case without charging you. Then, when your attorney works on a contingency basis, your attorney won’t get paid unless you get paid. In other words, your attorney has a strong financial incentive to give you honest feedback about your case and help you win everything that you deserve.

Your company’s human resources, however, work for the company. They have their bosses within the company, and they have an incentive to help the company. They may want to poke every possible hole in your case, even when those holes aren’t immediately present.

Companies and employers routinely try to trap employees. They try to catch them making mistakes and may bait them into making those mistakes. An experienced attorney can recognize these situations and help you avoid the pitfalls. Sometimes, your attorney will even help review your emails, texts or other work-related communications before you send them to make sure they don’t transmit anything that could be used against you in court.

People Make Mistakes More Often Than You Might Imagine

Most people who want to file sexual harassment claims are stressed, scared, confused, angry or full of a mix of similar emotions. They don’t always understand the type of language they need to use to protect themselves from retaliation. They may not be aware that the statute of limitations is 3 years under the FEHA even though it’s just 300 days under the EEOC. They may not be aware that they can seek repayment for damages such as back pay and emotional distress or that they may sometimes be able to pursue punitive damages. And they may not understand how seemingly trivial actions can come back to haunt them.

It may not be fatal to your case to reply to a text message or an email with a heart emoji, but something like that can hurt your case. People often want to end on a good note to ensure they get good references later, but it can hurt your case to send an email that says something like, “I really enjoyed my time working with the company.” Your employer will ask how anyone could take your sexual harassment claim seriously if you really enjoyed your time at the company. On the other hand, this may not be fatal to your case and can often be explained by the fact that you wanted to leave on a good note and hope that your now-former employer does not harm your chances of getting a new job.

These things happen all the time, especially in cases involving high-profile and powerful people. In the Harvey Weinstein case, for example, his victims sent loving emails after he abused them, and he was still convicted. Still, these things can weaken or destroy a case, so you need to be careful from the moment you decide to file a complaint until you have resolved it. Your company’s human resources professionals may have a lot of experience finding holes in complaints like yours. You want someone who has experience plugging up those holes and strengthening cases. You want an attorney to guide you and serve as your sounding board.