The Friendly Manager and His Harem

He compliments his staff on their looks in a way that is unprofessional.  The manager and family man enjoys flirting.  He rubs the backs of attractive female workers in a seductive way.  He stares at certain parts of their anatomy while they walk by and sometimes bumps other male managers with a smile while commenting, "Wow...Well look at that...Nice..."  And some of you know the rest. 

The manager is considered "charming," "friendly," and "sweet."   But a disheartened someone or a group knows different.  These quiet mouths avoid him for good reason.  They are careful what they say and do around him.  Yet, the women aren't innocent, they are guilty for falling into his manipulative traps and they know it.  Some of the women had received great titles, salaries, and more because of the clever gentleman while others, who weren't so accommodating or attractive, got next to nothing.  Therefore, those scorned workers feel jilted.  Yet, the gorgeous gullible women and career-driven opportunists, who obtained treats for performing tricks, wear guilt heavily on their hearts and minds.  "I shouldn't of...Why would I do that?  I don't want to owe this sick S.O.B for the rest of my life!" but they did.  Whenever they need something he is the go-to guy, but if they have loose lips they will sink their own ships at least that is what the mean-spirited manager has told some in so many words for days, weeks and even years who got to see his dark side.

People don't always lose jobs, receive death threats, or commit career suicide for exposing others, rather for many, at least lately, victims are believed, protected, and are praised for sharing their stories.  It all depends on who the harasser is and how much support or lack thereof they have.  Offend the wrong people who can help you, and you just might get thrown under the bus if one is the prideful one expecting to be protected even when guilty.  Yet, get on board with the right people, and the harasser is brought down low.

You might have encountered someone whether the same sex or the opposite sex who you thought was simply "nice" at work.  However, in time you learned there was more to that manager/boss/supervisor/owner than meets the eye.  He (or she) may have behaved disturbingly, strange, controlling and didn't mind letting you know what he or she wanted from you or someone else.  Don't sweep things under the rug, do something about them!  As I type, there are plenty more stories unfolding about sexual harassment at the workplace with A-listers as well as others.  It looks like select individuals' "protection" no longer exists.

Eye-opening #MeToo stories about victims being ensnared in a trap of sex or else teach us a lesson or two about life and beckons us to ask the questions, "What are you willing to do or tolerate for fame, fortune, and power?  How far would you go to risk your family, work and friendships?  Do you have an out-of-control appetite for sex?  Is your personal interests worth suffering over and how might what you do impact those you love?"  When you sum it all up, it's just not worth it.  So one might want to be wise when it comes to dealing with workers keeping in mind to always remain professional while leaving so-called harmless flirting, desires for sex, and overly friendly behavior out of the office and away from one's bread and butter--career.

Nicholl McGuire maintains this blog and is the author of What Else Can I Do on the Internet?  Socially Sweet, Privately Cruel Abusive Men and She's Crazy.

 

Types of Sexual Harassment

There are two types of legally recognized way of committing sexual harassment: (1) Quid pro quo sexual harassment; and (2) Hostile environment harassment.

I. Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment
Quid pro quo sexual harassment occurs when an employee is offered to be retained in his/her job or be promoted in exchange for sexual favors. In case of a student, the offer is to help receive a good grade or a favorable recommendation in exchange for sexual favors. The person who commits quid pro quo sexual harassment is a person with power to influence the victim's employment or educational situation like a supervisor, manager or a teacher in case of a student. An example would be if a manager suggests that an employee goes out with him on a date or asks for a neck or back rub every so often in exchange for retaining her post or be promoted.

In this type of sexual harassment, it is not important if the victim gave in or agrees to the offer. It is enough that the harasser floats or makes the offer and the victim is not barred from filing a claim if he or she later on changes his or her mind.

II. Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment
Hostile work environment sexual harassment, on the other hand, occurs when a co-worker, manager or supervisor in the work place makes unwelcome sexual advances which interferes with work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, or learning environment in the case of students. The sexual harassing conduct could be verbal, non-verbal, visual or physical. Example of a verbal harassing conduct is when one makes a sexual comment about a person's clothing, anatomy or looks. In cases of non-verbal sexually harassing conduct an example would be leering, staring or glaring at someone. Visual sexually harassing conduct on the other hand could be displaying sexually suggestive calendars, photographs, posters or cartoons in the workplace. Physically harassing conduct is when someone gives a massage around the neck or shoulders and the victim did not ask for it and regards it as offensive.

In this type of sexual harassment, even the employer is liable if he has knowledge or should have knowledge of the sexual harassment perpetrated on one of the employees and the employer either does nothing about it or even faulted the victim for the happening of the sexually harassing conduct.
In both cases, it would be to the best interest of the victim to secure the services of a lawyer immediately to protect the victim's legal rights.

John Luke Matthews is a regular contributor of relevant articles about the jurisprudence of businesses. He is part of the Mesriani Law Group and is currently taking information technology studies as well.
For more information about sexual harassment her employment law issues, visit our Professional Los Angeles Lawyers.