Sexual harassment can happen in any type of industry, company, or organization. In times past, many things now considered harassment were thought of as “normal” behavior. As the world has modernized, so has public recognition of our human right to equality increased—and our laws have generally been updated to reflect the changed societal perceptions. These changes have included the adoption of employee rights and protections, including the right to work in a hostility-free workplace, free of sexual harassment. Unfortunately, despite this recognition and these laws, bullies still harass people. When it happens at work, it is called sexual harassment in the workplace.

If you work in Louisianna, there are laws to protect employees, in some situations, from discrimination and sexual harassment. Whether you live in New Orleans and work in construction or live on the bayou and work in information services, resources are available online to help you understand Louisiana’s laws and whether you are protected from sexual harassment at work.

Human Rights in the Workplace

The Louisiana Employment Discrimination Law protects workers from gender-based bullying and from unwelcome sexual attention and covers both public and private employers. Specifically, it describes hiring, firing, promotions, compensation, and terms and conditions of employment as areas that should be free of discrimination and harassment. The Louisiana Commission on Human Rights is in charge of enforcing the law. 

Limitations of the Law

Note that state protections only apply to workplaces with at least 20 employees. If you are a woman who has been sexually harassed because of pregnancy or a related health condition, your workplace must have 25 employees.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

The federal government protects workers against sexual harassment at work with Title VII of the Federal Human Rights Act of 1964. It “prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.” This makes it illegal for employers to hire, promote, fire, or compensate employees based on their gender. Federal courts have included sexual discrimination in the wider category of overall discrimination. 

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is in charge of enforcing Title VII. The commission holds that gender-related comments or offensive remarks can be considered harassment, that any gender can be victim or harasser, and that harassment is not defined by other-gender offenses. 

Note that federal protections only apply to workplaces that have 15 or more employees. 

What to Do If You Have Been Harassed

What happens if you have been sexually harassed at work, but you are afraid to report it? What about if your employer has 14 employees? What should you do if you want to report a sexual harassment complaint, but your employer has no human resources department? What if your boss is your harasser? What if your job duties were changed because you told your boss that you are pregnant? You may have many questions and need help. We have answers.

Every state in our nation has a problem with sexual harassment in the workplace. Recurring or constant hostility in the workplace creates a type of corporate culture that can destroy the traits employers seek from employees. For example, the desired teamwork among coworkers or between departments, dedication to the company, and commitment to goals can be lost when employees face hostility at work. When a harasser bullies one person, they are likely doing the same thing to several people. And they have likely been behaving this way in previous jobs. To a certain extent, every employee in a hostile workplace suffers from an environment of bullying.  But no one suffers more than the harasser’s victim(s).

If you are the undeserving victim of sexual harassment at work, or even if you have been a witness to it, you have been affected personally and professionally by the behavior. You do not have to accept the harassment, and you do not have to quit your job. Consulting online resources can help you understand your state rights, and experts can guide you through the laws that are meant to support you.

What Is Indiana Doing About It?

Like many states, Indiana has recognized the toxicity of bullying in the workplace, and sexual harassment is arguably the most common type of workplace bullying. Since 2018, the Civil Rights Law has protected workers from Aberdeen to Zionsville by prohibiting sexual harassment in Indiana workplaces. 

Indiana Civil Rights Law

The Indiana Civil Rights Law protects both public and private employees, at companies with six or more people. It describes sexual harassment as follows:

• Harassment may be physical (like unwelcome touching), verbal (like gender-based insults or lewd comments), or visual (like inappropriate images). It may be overt or subtle.
• Harassment is defined by its effect on victims, not by the harasser’s intentions.
• Harassment occurs when the response to it has an impact on a victim’s employment. In this situation, the harasser is typically a person with power or leverage in the company.
• Harassment results in a toxic and hostile workplace, where a victim is unable to perform normally at work. This includes harassment that affects employee hiring, demotions, promotions, layoffs, compensation, work assignments, work location, and so on. 

Retaliation against complaints of sexual harassment is illegal and prosecutable.

If You Have Been Sexually Harassed

Victims of sexual harassment at work suffer from not just the practical results of the harassment but also from the emotional results. You may not know whether the impact of it will go away or will plague you for the rest of your life. We all deserve to work in a place that is free of hostility, where we feel safe to do our jobs. You can fight back, and you can have support to do it. Employment lawyers who specialize in helping victims of sexual harassment in workplaces can help you figure out how to regain what the harasser has taken from you.