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I have a questions about a word in a sexual harassment policy. In everything that I have read, harassment is described as "conduct that is unwelcome".
My question is this.... If employees are joking around and one "crosses the line" but the other employee says nothing at that time but a few days later comes to me to say that it made them feel uncomfortable but were afraid that since they were joking around, the offender may not consider his own behavior "unwelcome", is it still considered "unwelcome"?
I hope this post makes sense!
Thanks.
Todd(Workforce)
Joined: Sep 13, 2001 Posts: 807
Posted: 2002-04-10 10:50
I believe it matters more whether the recipient feels the comment was unwelcome than whether the initiator does. In other words, if I said something extremely harassing, and I happened to think it was perfectly acceptable, it doesn't matter. It's not up to me.
On the other extreme, I believe that a reasonable person would have to believe that the behavior was unwelcome, and not just the recipient. In other words, if I said "Have a nice day," and someone sued me for harassment, they may have a tough time winning.
I'm not a lawyer. Matt and Jon may have a different opinion.
Forum Hosts Legal Forum Host
Joined: Dec 20, 2001 Posts: 521
Posted: 2002-04-10 11:05
The post makes sense-- and so does Todd's reply. What matters is whether anyone subject to the words or conduct finds it offensive. Here, it seems clear that the employee who spoke to you did in fact feel uncomfortable. Now, Todd is also right to point out that words or conduct that are not objectively offensive (e.g., "have a nice day") do not become offensive just because someone unreasonably decides to take offense.
It is also true that words or conduct can be inappropriate, but not a legal violation. Title VII does not mandate a civility code. Nevertheless, many employers intentionally draft their policies to go beyond this to prohibit all sexually offensive words or conduct. Employers, of course, have a responsibility to enforce their own policies. In this context, if your company feels its policies have been violated, you may want to investigate and discipline as appropriate, whether or not the "recipient" was offended.
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Posted: 2002-04-10 10:19 
