Sexual Harassment Lawyers Draw The Line Between Sexual Harassment and Flirting
The sexual harassment lawyers of California Legal Team are here to provide you with all the information you need when it comes to navigating the fine line between flirting and sexual harassment.
What is sexual harassment?
Sexual harassment is unwanted sexual behavior, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Sexual harassment conduct could be made either explicitly or implicitly with the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.
Unwelcome or unwanted behavior is critical when determining cases of sexual harassment. Unwelcome behavior does not necessarily mean involuntary action, as it is possible for the victim to consent to certain conduct and voluntarily participate in it even though it is offensive and objectionable. Hence, sexual conduct is unwanted when the person subjected to it considers it to be unwelcome or unwanted.
When does flirting become sexual harassment?
The difference between flirting and sexual harassment is once again unwanted behavior. This means that it is a one sided complaint as only one person in a case of sexual harassment wants to be in that situation.
The widening ambit of what constitutes sexual harassment has made it hard to determine exactly when flirting becomes sexual harassment. Unfortunately a lot of complaints are not taken seriously because they are looked upon as cases of harmless flirtation or teasing. This has led to the amount of reported cases of such violence being reduced.
What does sexual harassment entail?
Sexual harassment includes many things from actual or attempted rape or sexual assault to sexual comments about a person’s clothing, anatomy, or looks or even staring at someone. The list of behavior is endless. What is relevant when ascertaining whether sexual harassment has occurred or not is the impact that such behavior has rather than the intent of the behavior.
In order to better understand whether behavior experienced or displayed constitutes sexual harassment you should consult expert sexual harassment lawyers.
Steps to take when dealing with sexual harassment
It is important that you know how to deal with a case of sexual harassment before it’s too late. Firstly, you should never blame yourself for unwanted attention. You should not feel guilty about such conduct, as it normally prevents you from seeking any help. This can result in severe future repercussions. Secondly, it is best to take action as quickly as possible as such behavior can escalate rather than disappear. Thirdly, it is advisable to keep a record of any behavior that is unwanted and could possibly constitute sexual harassment and take it to professional sexual harassment lawyers.
Finding the balance
Whether an incident amounts to sexual harassment or not will depend on balancing the severity of the incident and its frequency. The purpose of such a balancing act is to ensure that offensive comments are not made in the work environment but also to protect employers from liability for every objectionable remark. It is a fine balance that seeks to protect the person making the remark and the person receiving such remark. However, a single incident of unwanted behavior could very well constitute sexual harassment. Behavior that has the potential of being sexual harassment will be assessed from the perspective of a reasonable person (or reasonable woman). Under the reasonable standard, unless one-time unwelcome behavior is sufficiently severe, the behavior must be pervasive or regular to qualify as sexual harassment. Good sexual harassment lawyers will be able to tell you whether or not your situation constitutes as sexual harassment under these guidelines.
Why You Need Professional Sexual Harassment Lawyers and Sexual Harassment Law Specialists
Sexual harassment is our area of expertise. We have a vast amount of understanding and extensive experience litigating in cases of sexual harassment. If you have been a victim to any unwanted or unwelcome behavior, our sexual harassment lawyers are able to help you and give you peace of mind. Do not hesitate to contact us for a free consultation.
