Hostile work environment, the boss is constantly calling us “dumb ass”

unemployed_personQ) I work in a fiberglass shop, it’s just me, the owner and one other person, I feel like it is a hostile work environment, the boss is constantly calling us “dumb ass” and throwing things at us and yelling at us for even asking a question, I’m the only female who works there and the boss is always making sexual comments. I wear hoodies in 90° weather because it makes me uncomfortable. If I quit, can I get unemployment? I know he will try to fight it because I’ve threatened to quit and he said he will fight it so I won’t get unemployment. I have people who worked there that will tell you themselves how bad it is, so under what conditions will I be able to quit and get unemployment?

A) I’m sorry to hear that you’re experiencing a hostile work environment. Your boss’s behavior is completely unacceptable and illegal.

In general, if you quit your job voluntarily, you may not be eligible for unemployment benefits. However, if you can demonstrate that you quit due to a hostile work environment, you may be able to receive unemployment benefits.

To establish a hostile work environment, you must show that the behavior you experienced was severe or pervasive, and that it was based on your sex. The fact that you are the only female employee and that your boss is making sexual comments is evidence of gender-based discrimination, which can contribute to a hostile work environment.

To strengthen your case, it’s important to document the incidents of harassment, including the date, time, and details of each incident. You should also report the behavior to your boss’s supervisor or HR department if there is one.

Before quitting, consider speaking with an employment lawyer who can provide guidance on your legal rights and options. They can also assist you in filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or your state’s labor department, which can further strengthen your case for unemployment benefits.

Ultimately, whether or not you are eligible for unemployment benefits will depend on the specific circumstances of your case and the laws in your state.

According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission – Harassment is unwelcome conduct that is based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. Harassment becomes unlawful where 1) enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of continued employment, or 2) the conduct is severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Anti-discrimination laws also prohibit harassment against individuals in retaliation for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or lawsuit under these laws; or opposing employment practices that they reasonably believe discriminate against individuals, in violation of these laws.

Petty slights, annoyances, and isolated incidents (unless extremely serious) will not rise to the level of illegality. To be unlawful, the conduct must create a work environment that would be intimidating, hostile, or offensive to reasonable people.




Offensive conduct may include, but is not limited to, offensive jokes, slurs, epithets or name calling, physical assaults or threats, intimidation, ridicule or mockery, insults or put-downs, offensive objects or pictures, and interference with work performance. Harassment can occur in a variety of circumstances, including, but not limited to, the following:

The harasser can be the victim’s supervisor, a supervisor in another area, an agent of the employer, a co-worker, or a non-employee.
The victim does not have to be the person harassed, but can be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.
Unlawful harassment may occur without economic injury to, or discharge of, the victim.

The employer is automatically liable for harassment by a supervisor that results in a negative employment action such as termination, failure to promote or hire, and loss of wages. If the supervisor’s harassment results in a hostile work environment, the employer can avoid liability only if it can prove that: 1) it reasonably tried to prevent and promptly correct the harassing behavior; and 2) the employee unreasonably failed to take advantage of any preventive or corrective opportunities provided by the employer.

The employer will be liable for harassment by non-supervisory employees or non-employees over whom it has control (e.g., independent contractors or customers on the premises), if it knew, or should have known about the harassment and failed to take prompt and appropriate corrective action.

When investigating allegations of harassment, the EEOC looks at the entire record: including the nature of the conduct, and the context in which the alleged incidents occurred. A determination of whether harassment is severe or pervasive enough to be illegal is made on a case-by-case basis.http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/harassment.cfm

Sexual Harassment
It is unlawful to harass a person (an applicant or employee) because of that person’s sex. Harassment can include “sexual harassment” or unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature.

Harassment does not have to be of a sexual nature, however, and can include offensive remarks about a person’s sex. For example, it is illegal to harass a woman by making offensive comments about women in general.

Both victim and the harasser can be either a woman or a man, and the victim and harasser can be the same sex.

Although the law doesn’t prohibit simple teasing, offhand comments, or isolated incidents that are not very serious, harassment is illegal when it is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment or when it results in an adverse employment decision (such as the victim being fired or demoted).

The harasser can be the victim’s supervisor, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker, or someone who is not an employee of the employer, such as a client or customer.http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/sexual_harassment.cfm

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