Ideally, an individual's work environment is one in which the employee is comfortable and one that fosters high levels of creativity and productivity. Such environments can lead to feelings of self-fulfillment for employees and can increase revenue for the employer. However, sometimes work environments make employees feel uncomfortable rather than safe, creative or needed. Such work environments should be remedied so that employees can maintain their physical, mental and emotional health while on the job.
Definition
A hostile work environment is an environment in which an employee, due to actions by co-workers or the employer, does not feel comfortable performing duties. In extremely hostile work environments, the employee may not feel comfortable even coming into the work facility.
Inappropriate Comments or Actions
A work environment may be considered hostile when co-workers or an employer makes lewd jokes or touches inappropriately (sexual harassment), or when co-workers or an employer makes unwanted comments about an employee's age, gender, race or physical or mental competence. Even if the majority of the co-workers have no problem with the actions or comments, a work environment can be considered hostile if the actions or comments clearly make an employee uncomfortable in the workplace.
Physical Hostility
A hostile work environment usually refers to a work environment that makes an employee emotionally and mentally unable to perform work-related tasks. However, a hostile work environment also can refer to a work environment in which an employee is threatened physically. This can include outright acts of violence, or an employee being forced by an employer to do physical tasks that may put the employee's health at risk.
Additional Examples
Additional examples of a hostile work environment include an employee's having hours or wages reduced for refusing to do work that is outside of his job description or expertise, being threatened with job termination if sexual favors are not provided to a co-worker or employer, or being assigned an unreasonable work load in response to reporting problems with management to higher-ups. Hostile work environments also may include employers' overtly ignoring concerns of employees or responding to those concerns in a belittling manner.
Legalities
Those who are exposed to a hostile work environment have the legal right to sue their employer. However, those who wish to sue must report any incidences related to the hostile work environment within 45 days of the incident. An individual has a better chance of winning a hostile work environment lawsuit when he does not respond negatively to the hostility and is not hostile in return.
Non-Hostile Environments
Because employers can be sued for hostile work environments, it is important to realize what is not considered harassment. Single incidences of comments or actions (for example, one racial joke) may not be taken as evidence of a hostile environment. The actions have to be at least semi-repetitive in nature and serious enough to make the employee constantly uncomfortable in the workplace. Nevertheless, any incident that could lead to a hostile work environment should be noted formally in writing so that documentation exists should a lawsuit prove necessary in the future.
Tags: hostile, work, environment, work environment, hostile work, hostile work environment, work environments, work environment, co-workers employer, environment which
Related Posts:
How Does Medicaid Work With Kaiser Insurance
How Does Medicaid Work with Kaiser Insurance?Kaiser Permanente Insurance Benefit SummaryHealthcare providers offer Medicare and Medicaid insurance plans to ensure qualified seniors receive the med...
How Does Biofreeze Work
How Does Biofreeze Work?What is Biofreeze?Biofreeze is a cold therapy treatment gel used as a therapeutic aid for sore or damaged muscles. Manufactured by Performance Health in Pennsylvania, Biofr...
How Do Flushless Urinals Work
Flushless urinals can conserve waterUrinals consume a lot of water---about one gallon per flush. Seventeen percent of water in restrooms in public and commercial buildings is used to flush urinals...
Mail Order Bride Service Work
How Does a Mail Order Bride Service Work?IntroductionArranged marriages have been around almost as long as human beings. Although in the United States this custom has long since died out, in other...
California Labor Laws For Salaried Employees
Business executives and other positions enjoy exempt status in California which entitles them to a base salary regardless of the hours workedCalifornia labor laws for salaried employees differ onl...
