My brother is gay and is facing sexual discrimination in the form of jokes at his workplace. What legal action can he take?

Question:  My gay brother works in the retail industry and is constantly being subjected to crude sexual jokes by the other male employees at the store.  His co-workers are always making disgusting remarks about homosexuals and using sexually explicit language to describe them.  Can this be seen as sexual harassment even though he has not been physically assaulted?

Response:  The Supreme Court unanimously held same sex sexual harassment is prohibited under Title VII of the Federal law against sexual harassment.  This decision was reached in a 1998 case, which involved a male employee who claimed he was the victim of sexual harassment from other male workers.  It does not matter if the same sex harasser is a homosexual or not.  This case also set the precedent that the harasser does not need to have sexual intentions towards a target for their behavior to be viewed as sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment rights can be violated in a variety of circumstances.  The victim as well as the harasser may be a woman or a man.  The victim does not have to be of the opposite sex.  The law for sexual harassment provides a remedy for any employee who is consistently exposed to sexual harassment that is so egregious and pervasive as to create a hostile work environment.

Before a lawsuit can be filed, a complaint must be filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).  If the employer fails to take care of the situation, filing a lawsuit may be the only option.

Answered by Linda Adams

Additional Resources:

• Sexual Harassment In The Workplace                        
• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission     

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