Workplace Sexual Assault Attorney

Most people erroneously believe that they are legally required to tell their employer before they seek restitution for sexual harassment or assault. Although there are some provisions in the law that could potentially allow an employer to use their ignorance of the situation to avoid a guilty verdict, you are not without options if you failed to report that assault or harassment in a timely manner.

According to state law, upper management does not necessarily need to be aware of the situation, especially if a member of the management team was involved. However, your employer might be able to remove their liability if you do not tell them about harassment from a non-management employee. This is especially true if the employer has a program in place that is intended to prevent harassment of a sexual nature from occurring on the job.

It is also important to note that employers typically have the ability to avoid legal consequences if they immediately take corrective action against a non-management employee as soon as they learn that there is an issue. With all of these variables, it is best to speak up after the incident happens. However, you should still contact a lawyer to discuss your case even if you did not file a complaint with your employer.

A good example of how failing to report harassment can impact your case happened very recently. Sacramento State agreed in March 2015 to pay $123,000 to settle a harassment lawsuit that had been filed by former employee Jeffery Sharp. According to Sharp, he had been subjected to suggestive comments, gestures and touching by the Advancement Office’s Director of Development.

The university fought back by stating that Sharp had not followed the proper reporting procedure, but they ultimately offered a six figure settlement in order to make the situation go away. This is highlights the fact that many employers will be willing to settle for a smaller figure if they can get you to agree to waive any other liability that they might have in the applicable case. On the other hand, if the lawsuit had moved forward and the university had been found guilty, it is likely that Sharp would have received a larger settlement.

There have been many successful sexual harassment and assault cases in California, including one that was very high profile. In 2002, a group of six women who had worked together in Escondido won a $30 million settlement against Ralphs grocery store. All of the women reported being sexually and physically harassed and assaulted for a year by the store manager.

In this particular case, the women did report these issues to higher management, but the grocery chain’s response was to simply transfer the offending manager to another location. Jury members indicated that this lack of a proper response to the situation was one of the reasons that they awarded the six women such a large settlement.

The Department of Fair Employment and Housing receives and evaluates many sexual harassment cases each year, and they also offer training for employers to help minimize these incidents. Their records indicate that there are three main types of sexual harassment cases that are filed by employees:

1. An employee being fired or retaliated against on the job for refusing to put up with sexual advances and harassment.
2. An employee being forced to work in an offensive environment.
3. An employee who ends up quitting because the offensive environment was so bad that any reasonable person would no longer be able to put up with working there.