Tag: Harassment

Sixth Circuit Decision Offers Direction for Employers Responding to Complaints of Harassment The Sixth Circuit has recently issued a decision that offers employers insight on how to prepare for and respond to allegations of harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. This decision provides employers an idea of the corrective actions they must take after the harassment and the steps they must take before it ever occurs. In this recent case, the court had recognized that a former maintenance technician had been subject to racial harassment on four separate occasions, including leaving harassing messages in the employee's locker and toolbox. After each incident, the employer had provided a timely response and taken increasingly strong actions to stop the harassment. The actions the employer took included reviews of security footage, interviews with employees, improved security procedures, and training refreshers for all employees. However, despite continuous communication with the victim on the actions being taken and all of these steps, the harasser was never identified. The victim ultimately filed a lawsuit against the employer alleging violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The Kentucky Human Rights Act, and the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Act. After discovery, the employer moved for summary judgment. The court found that the coworker standard of review applied, which requires that an employee prove that the employer tolerated or condoned the harassment. In this case, the court found that the employer's response was suitable and granted the motion for summary judgment. The employee appealed, arguing that the employer's response was not suitably prompt, the individual performing the investigation was not suitably qualified, and that the training failed to address the company's policies on harassment. Based on these facts, the employee alleged that the employer allowed the harassment to continue. Generally, courts have found that suitable corrective action includes a prompt investigation of the alleged incident, interviewing those allegedly involved in the incident, alerting others in the management of the harassment, and checking with the complainant to determine whether the harassment has stopped. In this case, the court found that the employer's response was suitable "because it took prompt action reasonably directed at determining the source of the harassment by listening to Burns, conducting a timely investigation, interviewing those potentially responsible, and following up with him frequently." As for the allegations concerning the training, the court found it was moot because no case law was addressed that would require additional training, and the company possessed mandatory harassment training as part of the onboarding process. The employee also alleged that the investigator was not qualified to perform the investigation, but the Sixth Circuit disagreed, finding that an HR generalist is generally suitable. As a result, the Sixth Circuit found that the employer's response was when taken as a wholly reasonable and, as a result, affirmed the lower court's ruling of summary judgment. Employer Takeaways This case gives a strong indicator of the corrective action necessary to establish a suitable response to harassment complaints within the workplace. Further, it demonstrates the importance of ensuring a suitable harassment training policy as part of the onboarding procedure, as the employer in this case did. Learn more by downloading our free resource on Adverse Action Notice Protocols in Compliance With FCRA. Source

Tag: Harassment

Sixth Circuit Decision Offers Direction for Employers Responding to Complaints of Harassment

Our Process

Our Platform

Screenings

For Your Industry

For Your Role

Webinar

Resources Library

Logins

E-Book

Services

Industry

Resources

Our Company