Here’s more proof that strong anti-harassment policies can help companies avoid taking the bullet in court.
In a recent case, an employee claimed her supervisor sexually harassed her for more than two and a half years. Throughout the entire time, the company had a policy against harassment and advised employees to report complaints to their supervisors, HR or a dedicated hotline.
However, the employee chose not to report for two and a half years. When she eventually did, the supervisor was fired within a few days.
She sued the company anyway, claiming she didn’t report the harassment because she feared retaliation, and the company should have known about the situation anyway.
The court didn’t buy it. She gave no evidence that she had any reason to worry about retaliation, or that anyone in the company would reasonably have been able to tell there was a harassment problem.
In the end, the employee herself was to blame for the harassment continuing for such a long time. Once it found out, the company took the right action by investigating and firing the harasser.
Cite: Adams v. O’Reilly Automotive, Inc.
