Human Resource Blog

Oregon Sexual Harassment

	Labor Laws
Complete State & Federal Labor Law Posters 1 Year Compliance Protection Plan State ONLY Labor Law Posters Federal Labor Law Posters

	Management/Leadership
Complete Harassment Forms FMLA Administrator Kit Harassment Prevention Kit Sexual Harassment Kit Workplace Information Sheets

The HR department has received several complaints of a supervisor who sends explicit sexual pictures to his male friends and coworkers and tells off-color jokes to them. The person complaining is male. Is there such a thing as sexual harassment of a male by a heterosexual male in Oregon?

This is clearly an example of sexual harassment. And sexual harassment is a violation of both Oregon state laws and federal laws. Sexual harassment applies even if both parties are of the same sex.

Federal law refers to the creation of a “hostile working environment.” This seems to fit that description. The scenario described could create a hostile working environment for women, and for men as well. The male employee who is complaining is also facing sexual harassment.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the federal agency that handles harassment complaints. The agency says reports of same-sex harassment cases are up. While some involve inappropriate advances by homosexual employees, many are situations in which a same-sex employee has been exposed to sexual material in the workplace, resulting in a complaint.

The EEOC urges employees to follow company policy before filing a complaint. It is a good idea to talk about the issue with a manager or a supervisor. Sometimes, however, the owner or supervisor is the offending party. In those circumstances, court rulings have determined that this requirement unnecessary where there is no HR department.

The agency then investigates the complaint to decide if the complaint is legitimate. If it is, the EEOC’s first step is to attempt to mediate the issue. Should that effort fail, the agency then files a complaint on behalf of the worker.

State agencies in some states also pursue sexual harassment complaints.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 declares that any behavior causing “an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment” amounts to sexual harassment. It is not uncommon for both men and women to file complaints about workplace sexual harassment. The law applies to any company with 15 or more workers.

Besides Title VII, a number of states have similar state laws.

So the behavior described in this situation is a classic example of sexual harassment, and that applies even if the people involved – both the alleged perpetrator and the complainant – are of the same sex. It sounds as if it fits the “hostile working environment” criteria. JH