
Most hostile work environments are terrible places to work, but will not give you legal redress. Hostility in its many forms, as explained above, is not enough to create an unlawful work environment, unless the hostility directed at you is because of your membership in a protected class of people or because you engaged in some form of legally-protected conduct. Most assume that an employer that allows a hostile work environment to exist is breaking the law. The phrase hostile work environment is a term than many people have heard. But I Work in a Hostile Work Environment. Specifically, unlawful harassment in California is defined as unwelcomed comments or conduct related to membership in a protected class of people that becomes so severe or pervasive so as to fundamentally change the workplace, rendering it hostile to the employee based on their membership in a protected class. In short, the successful plaintiff in a harassment lawsuit will usually have to prove the harassing conduct was directed at them because they were a member of a protected class of people, or because they had engaged in some form of legally protected conduct.

In fact, bullying and harassment are unfortunately NOT considered unlawful in the workplace, unless it can be proved that the conduct is being directed at the employee for unlawful reasons.

However, what surprises many is that this conduct, without an unlawful motive, is not considered unlawful. Bullying, yelling, cold-shouldering, placing one under grossly unreasonable conditions, setting impossible-to-make objectives, name calling, belittling comments or conduct, offensive joking, and rude or angry behavior are all the tools of the harasser. We all know what the plain English definition of harassment is: aggressive pressure or intimidation. What is Unlawful Harassment, and What is Not?

Because of the wide-reaching effects of workplace harassment on an employee, the employee often ends up a broken person, without a job, with problems at home, and with serious emotional and physical issues that will take years to overcome. Those suffering from abject harassment from their boss or from co-workers often suffer physically disabling conditions and those in severe situations can even end up afflicted with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, clinical depression, thoughts of suicide, panic attacks, and other debilitating forms of mental illness. While suffering from workplace harassment, it is often impossible to perform at your best at work, or to be yourself in your home and personal life. The Terrible Effects of Harassment in the Workplaceīeing subjected to regular, unrelenting harassment can form emotional scars that take years to heal, even with the help of a good therapist.
