Sexual Harassment Lawyer Toledo, Ohio

Sexual harassment in the workplace is an unlawful activity as defined by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). This form of harassment includes any kind of unwelcome sexual advances, physical and verbal harassment of a sexual, and requests made for sexual favors.

In 2020 alone, the EEOC saw 6.587 charges filed that alleged sexual harassment. It is important to note that the EEOC and various state laws offer employees protection from sexual harassment of any kind within the workplace.

If you have any kind of questions regarding the specific laws that protect you and your right to work in a non-hostile workplace, do not hesitate to reach out to our sexual harassment law firm representing clients in Toledo, Ohio.

What Constitutes Sexual Harassment?

Sexual harassment appears in several different ways. As defined by the EEOC, sexual harassment can be any of the following:

• Unwelcome sexual advances
• Requests for sexual favors of any kind
• Various other physical and verbal harassments that are of a sexual manner
• Nonconsensual touches

Harassment also does not have to strictly be of a sexual manner either. Things like offensive remarks about a person’s sex can fall under sexual harassment as well.

You might see this in the form of a co-worker harassing you or others by making offensive comments based on the fact that you are a woman or a man.

The harasser and the victim can be either a man or woman – meaning that you can be harassed by someone of the same sex, and it can be considered sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment can take several different forms. If you are unsure if the harassment you are facing is sexual harassment, speaking with a top sexual harassment attorney in Toledo can be one way to help determine what form of harassment you are facing.

What Qualifies as Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?

There are several things that qualify as sexual harassment. The law around sexual harassment does not prohibit things like teasing, offhand comments, or even isolated event that might not be considered overly serious as sexual harassment.

To qualify as sexual harassment, the harassment must meet the definition we explored above while also falling into these qualifications:

• Sexual harassment must be beyond a single incident. This means that the harassment is severe or frequent enough that it is creating an offensive or hostile work environment for you and/or other co-workers.
• It can also qualify as sexual harassment if it results in negative or adverse employment decisions around the victim. The victim of sexual harassment may face decisions like being fired, demoted, or denied other employment opportunities and benefits.

One other important note to keep in mind is that sexual harassment, while it can take several forms, can also come from several different people including:

• A supervisor
• A co-worker
• Someone who does not work for the employer
• A supervisor from another area

For further questions related to what qualifies as sexual harassment, reach out to a Toledo sexual harassment attorney at The Friedmann Firm today.

What To Do If You are Subjected to Sexual Harassment

When you find yourself in a situation where you are facing sexual harassment, there are several steps you can take for yourself. These steps include:

• Notify your employer or an HR representative you trust the harassment as soon as possible. This should be done in writing and by speaking with them.
• Keep your own records of when you told your employer about the sexual harassment and what you reported. This should be kept either as a physical record or on your own personal computer.
  • Even if a verbal conversation occurs, you should send a follow-up email reiterating the conversation.
• Keep documentation of the harassment as much as possible. This can include saving emails, text messages, social media posts, and other forms of communication as well as noting when the harassment takes place and in what form.
• If you do not have a copy of the sexual harassment policy at your workplace, ask your employer for a copy of it.
• Set your expectations to your employer following the sexual harassment policy.

If nothing is done about the report by your employer or if they are not following their own policy, contact a Toledo sexual harassment lawyer.

For further information on what to do if you are subjected to sexual harassment, see our post here.

What Happens After You File A Sexual Harassment Complaint

In the best-case scenario following a sexual harassment complaint at your workplace, the complaint will be thoroughly investigated and handled effectively. This might involve corrective action for the harasser or other kinds of consequences.

But sometimes filing a sexual harassment complaint may not result in this kind of handling. You may encounter retaliation and hostility in the workplace – this can include you being fired after a complaint has been made.

If your complaint through your workplace goes unhandled, filing an EEOC complaint may be your next step. You can consult with a lawyer before filing an EEOC complaint if you would like.

Once an EEOC complaint has been received, the EEOC will send you a letter of confirmation. Depending on the investigation that results, you will be notified of the results.

From there, you and a lawyer from a sexual harassment law firm in Toledo, Ohio can decide how to proceed.

Contact A Successful Toledo Sexual Harassment Attorney

If you are facing a situation of workplace sexual harassment, contact the experienced Toledo sexual discrimination lawyers here at The Friedmann Firm, LLC. Our lawyers specialize in handling employment law, including all types of cases involving sexual harassment.

With an aggressive approach, we work to ensure that all employees are safe and that employers are unable to continue in violations of the law. Should you face any retaliation from reporting sexual harassment, continued harassment, or if you have questions related to what you can do next, the Toledo sexual harassment lawyers at The Friedmann Firm are here to help.

You can contact us over the phone at 614-610-9755 or through our contact form to schedule a confidential and free consultation.