01.14.10
Posted in Recent Headlines, Uncategorized at 7:09 pm by normarae2008
In a press release dated January 4, 2010, the EEOC announced it has sued American Laser Centers for violation of federal law by “subjecting a class of women to a sexually hostile work environment in its Fresno, California, clinic by retaliating against the manager of that clinic for complaining about it.”
According to the suit, EEOC v. American Laser Centers, LLC, et al, the Fresno’s clinics consulting physician and landlord created a hostile work environment by engaging in frequent, unwelcome sexual harassment towards female employees. In spite of complaints by female employees, the company failed to assist them. The company is accused of retaliating against the female manager at the Fresno location for her repeated complaints by firing her.
EEOC Fresno Director Melissa Barrios said “no employees should have to silently endure this type of offensive sexual conduct in order to keep a job. Employees have a right to work in an environment free of sexual harassment.”
We’ll keep you updated on this case as more information becomes available.
Portions of this report were provided by the EEOC Newsroom Release dated 1-4-10.
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12.07.09
Posted in Contact Us, Uncategorized at 8:27 pm by normarae2008
If you or a family member was a victim of sexual harassment prior to 1964 when Title VII of the Civil Rights Act was written, I’d like to hear from you. By the same token, if you’ve suffered sexual harassment since Title VII went into law I’d also like to talk with you.
I’m working on a new project in which I’m hoping to connect women from the 1960’s (and/or their relatives) when we didn’t have legal protections against sexual misconduct in the workplace, with women who have suffered the same offenses from 1964 well into the 21st century. What will we discuss? The environment, human behaviors, and workplace policies in comparison from then to now. What will we learn? We hope to learn how much or how little has changed in the workplace in spite of the laws to protect working men and women. How will we use this data? My goal is to collect all of the information and feedback and incorporate it into a book that in turn may help educate business and government on what still needs to be done to protect women in the workplace and improve Title VII protections.
Every case is unique and complicated. Every victim of sexual harassment has a different story to tell that is not a cookie cutter of someone else’s story. Every women has a right to tell her story and have it heard, and hopefully make a difference in our efforts to change the way we deal with sexual misconduct in today’s working environment. Women learn from each other’s experiences, and as a special niche group women who have suffered harassment have stories that are powerful and that collectively can change things. My goal is to gather up the power of these women and put it to use to affect change in how we manage corporate policies, codes of ethics, and develop new laws to protect the rights of men and women in the workplace.
If you were affected by the devastation of sexual harassment during those years, and are willing to share your story not only with me but with someone else who experienced similar job-related issues, I strongly encourage you to contact me either at this website or on my personal email posted above and/or at humancapitalachievement@hotmail.com. I sincerely hope to hear from you as we dig deeper to discover how much work we still may need to make in the education, awareness, and development of tougher laws to protect women and men against sexual harassment in the workplace. All of your comments and your name will remain confidential, so please do not fear contacting me. I sincerely hope to hear from you.
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11.28.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 8:35 pm by normarae2008
We’re quickly approaching our one year anniversary. We’ve helped numerous women and young teen girls who have contacted us confidentially at our email address (for privacy purposes). We look forward to an even more ambitious year with more interaction with women who have been the unfortunate victims of sexual harassment. Please contact me if you’d like to share your experience or are seeking help with your individual situation. I am a 28 year Human Resources professional with a passion for civil rights, personal freedoms, and a workplace that embraces equality and the law for all people. Please contact me if you need to talk, share your thoughts, or need help and referrals. I’m here for you.
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09.23.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 5:58 pm by normarae2008
We launched this site almost 10 months ago. During that time we’ve received personal e-mails from women seeking help with their questions, concerns and fears about sexual harassment. Some had real problems in their work environment involving their direct supervisors. We also received e-mails from a few teenagers who were frightened by older men who were sexually abusing and/or stalking them on the internet. Many women are fearful of putting their information publicly on a website so I respect and appreciate their use of confidential e-mails.
The last several months have been eye-opening for me personally as I’ve listened to people and tried to provide answers, do research, and be a resource for those in needs. Although I had hoped for more of a public dialogue, I respect everyone’s individual right to privacy and am committed to helping those in need in whatever format is most comfortable.
As we slowly approach my one year anniversary of this site, I will commit to offering more information, resources, and more personal opinion about the nature and state of sexual harassment in today’s workplace. I will be writing a weekly article beginning this week — please check back in.
Normarae
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08.03.09
Posted in Recent Headlines at 2:46 pm by normarae2008
Recently the Wall Street Journal reported an increase in sexual harassment complaints at the United Nations. The U.N. is a large, complex international organization with 60,000 employees.
The WSJ studied five of the recent sexual harassment complaints. Other reports indicated that the U.N. administrative sector was receiving approximately 8-15 cases per year. This rise in complaints led U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon to issue the following bulletin to all U.N. employees: “any form of discrimination, harassment including sexual harassment and abuse of authority is prohibited.”
The complaint system within the U.N. is reported to be voluminous and complicated. The Secretary-General vows to get a handle on the harassment issues.
Even in an organization designed to promote peace and harmony among world leaders, harassment can be an issue.
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07.13.09
Posted in Examples of Sexual Harassment at 3:32 pm by normarae2008
Sexual harassment and other workplace violations continue to raise questions for employers and employees alike. Although progress has been made, there is considerable evidence that further education and promotion of harassment-free workplaces are required not just in California, but across the nation.
Before I discuss a recent case that was presented to me, let’s establish a common framework for the definition of sexual harassment as provided by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission:
“Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment when submission to or rejection of this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual’s employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.”
Who can be a victim? The victim can be a member of either sex, and doesn’t have to be a member of the opposite sex. The harasser can be the victim’s supervisor or manager, an agent of the company, a supervisor from another part of the company, a contractor of the company, or a non-employee.
It’s important to note that sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
With a common framework established, I’ll review a case I recently received from a woman who works as a cocktail waitress. She wrote to me at my website at www.stopworkplaceharassment.com, and told me that she was quite distressed over the treatment she was receiving from her boss. He was allegedly touching her in sexually unwelcome ways, and he had threatened to terminate her employment if she didn’t provide sexual favors in return for her continued employment.
My initial reaction would be to quit the job, but this individual needed her job and was fearful of finding another job in a lackluster economy. She also expressed concerns that just because she wore revealing “cocktail” outfits to work, she was partly responsible for her dilemma and would not have a basis for a claim of sexual harassment. I’m not a lawyer, but I explained to her that I’ve had 28 years in Human Resources work. I would believe that her clothing had limited if any bearing on her case, because her clothing was her “work uniform” for that line of work. Although I didn’t have the opportunity to interview her boss and conduct a thorough investigation of all parties, I anticipate that she is entitled to the same protections under the law that all employees are entitled to, regardless of what she wore to work. Her boss’s actions, requiring an alleged “quid pro quo” form of sexual harassment, if found to be true, could very well be a form of sexual harassment and a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. I strongly encouraged her to prepare her notes and file a complaint with the owners of the restaurant, and if that didn’t work to talk with legal counsel for further evaluation of her case.
Harassment is an unfortunate occurrence that creates hostile feelings, disappointment, and a breach of trust. It has a painful way of severing the most positive of work relationships, and it can prove costly in many ways. Providing a harassment-free workplace is a key to promoting a positive company culture. Every employee should work towards these ideals, but senior management should exercise due diligence to provide moral leadership and send the message that discrimination in any form will not be tolerated.
Special thanks to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for their definition of sexual harassment.
This article reprinted from www.examiner.com
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06.28.09
Posted in Examples of Sexual Harassment at 4:19 pm by normarae2008
HR World just published a list of history making sexual harassment cases which are quite interesting to review. The list includes President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky; Bill Clinton and Paula Jones; Kobe Bryant and a Colorado teenager; Anita Hill versus Clarence Thomas, and several other landmark as well as somewhat creepy cases.
Each case includes a brief description of the matter including the allegations and their final disposition. The review covers many years of sexual harassment case law and interpretation of sexual harassment behavior, and demonstrates the impact harassment has had on our social and corporate behaviors.
Reviewing these cases is a good source of education, and helps us remember past mistakes in an effort to prevent further harassment in the future.
I encourage our readers to visit www.hrworld.com and enter “top sexual harassment cases” in the search feature.
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06.16.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:22 pm by normarae2008
There’s been a lot of activity and proposed legislation in numerous states, California included, about new bullying laws. So what exactly is bullying and how does it affect both employees and employers in 2009?
Bullying is the repeated use of aggressive or unreasonable behavior against employees. It can come in the form of verbal, physical or even psychological formats. Several states are seeking new legislation to fight this form of harassment, and some have made significant progress. I reported on Massachusetts recently on my website, and the work they’ve been doing. California has a number of efforts underway as well. As I reported last Month following my article on Massachusetts, this type of abuse is four times more prevalent than sexual harassment alone.
This is clearly a growing problem for a violation of people’s rights that aren’t protected by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The Massachusetts targets workplace harassment, bullying, and mobbing without regard to protected class status.
In my efforts to promote education and awareness of workplace harassment, I met a documentary producer out of New York, a hardworking, creative and dedicated woman named Beverly Peterson. She works with a group called No Job Is Worth This. I’ve promoted her videos dealing with workplace bullying on my website, and I’ll reference her website below. I welcome your comments or help introducing other related groups you’d like us to contact and promote in this site. I’m very interested in sharing information for a worthy cause, and to improve the workplace experience for everyone.
Please visit www.nojobisworththis.com and view all of Ms. Peterson’s documentaries on bullying and workplace harassment. After you’ve viewed her documentaries, I welcome an exchange of opinions and dialogue on this important subject, so please write to me to express your views.
Please write to me at this address or my private email at normarae2008@gmail.com to give me your ideas, insights, or other topics you’d like us to consider.
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06.03.09
Posted in Examples of Sexual Harassment at 8:21 pm by normarae2008
I began this blog last December, and since then we’ve received over 5,000 visitors. I’ve also received private e-mails that I’ve responded to with (hopefully) helpful advice and coaching for women who have been victims of alleged sexual harassment. Here are some highlights of their stories. I’ve protected their anonymity at their request so I will summarize their experiences and will not use their real names:
“Susie” worked in a hospital and was being touched inappropriately by a male co-worker. She shared her entire story with us and wanted help with approaching her Human Resources department so that she could manage her complaint on her own. We provided information, coaching, and help with her preparation for that HR meeting.
“Sandy” works in a cocktail restaurant/bar and was subject to frequent fondling and sexual demands by her superior. He also held her job over her head unless she returned sexual favors to him. We provided comparative analysis of her situation against a hostile work environment and quid pro quo harassment as identified in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. We discussed her options to file a complaint with restaurant management or other options.
“Sally” was complaining about being docked in pay, and was quite upset about it. She was concerned about being told to “calm down,” and was wondering if such a reference was harassment. After we explored her situation further, we assured her that it probably wasn’t a case of harassment, but that the wage mistakes needed to be corrected in a timely basis and she should consult with her union representative and/or the labor board if the situation persisted. As it turned out, the wage issue was an error and was supposed to be corrected.
“Two teenagers” wrote to me about problems being stalked by older men. In one case, a considerably older man was doing lewd and sexual acts over the internet, and in the second case, and older man was doing lewd acts over his cell phone. In both cases I encouraged the young women to stop all conversation with the men, and report the incidents to their parents even though it would be a hard thing to do. I also told them to contact the police and file complaints about the men’s behavior. I was assured that both of these women were going to follow this advice.
I’ve met other women in the past six months, but these cases represent the kinds of issues that I’ve received. If you have a question, or problem, no matter how large or small, please contact me at normarae2008@gmail or at this blog site. My goal is to help as many women as I can as we sort out the questions and challenges of sexual harassment.
Thanks for reading and writing – Normarae
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05.28.09
Posted in Recordkeeping at 8:11 pm by normarae2008
I was reviewing the letters I’ve received privately through my email address this morning, and two important pieces of information kept surfacing. If you feel you might be experiencing sexual harassment or other forms of workplace abuses, there are two important things you should consider. One, begin documenting all events, actions, conversations, project assignments, change in job responsibility, wage practices, etc. Include dates, times, locations, and names of all persons involved. Be as specific as you can.
Secondly, maintain confidentiality regarding your situation. You may wish to share your concerns with a co-worker, but the last thing you need is company gossip to muddy the waters. Let’s face it, people talk, and they pass judgment without having all of the facts. Protect your privacy, protect your good name, and protect your future employment while you gather data confidentially, then present it to an objective third party such as Human Resources, your union representative, or other third party representative. If your company does not have a Human Resources department, you may consider talking with a more senior executive in the company, or you can also contact legal aid or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for assistance. The important thing is follow your instincts. If you believe you were harassed, and if you dealt with unwelcome conduct in the workplace that was offensive, you should seek assistance.
If you have questions or comments, write to me privately at normarae2008@gmail.com, or write to this blog at www.stopworkplaceharassment.com.
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