Harassment is abusive behavior that targets a worker for a protected characteristic. Harassment can involve the creation of a hostile work environment. Workers should not have to compromise their safety or mental health just to keep their jobs. Workers who can identify hostile work environments, possibly caused by the three types of behavior below, can document their experiences and take appropriate action.
What behaviors commonly create hostile work environments?
1. Leering or glaring
Hostile work environments may develop due to nonverbal communications among workers. Leering involves a crude or lascivious expression intended to express sexual interest or arousal. Glaring, on the other hand, expresses anger or violent intent. Workers who experience regular leering and glaring may feel very uncomfortable and unsafe in their workplaces.
2. Unwanted touching
Unwanted physical contact is a common issue in sexual harassment. Inappropriate physical contact can also occur as a means of offending someone due to their religion. People may even make physical contact or physically intimidate other coworkers over their race or other protected characteristics, which can create a hostile work environment.
3. Displaying inappropriate items
A co-worker putting up a calendar full of nearly nude pin-up models could create a hostile work environment. So could displays making fun of common racial stereotypes or religious tropes. People can share jokes and display their prejudices through verbal communication, or they can use physical items or electronic communications to achieve the same goal.
Those dealing with a hostile work environment where conduct is pervasive and abusive may have reason to take legal action. Documenting the conduct that creates a hostile work environment may make it easier for people to demand justice for the harassment and discrimination that they’ve experienced in the workplace.
