I am in a hostile work environment and know I can prove it but what is the process and money for some thing like this?
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I am in a hostile work environment and know I can prove it but what is the process and money for some thing like this?
I can’t afford a large lawyer bill.
Asked on November 27, 2012 under Employment Labor Law, South Carolina
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
The most important thing to bear in mind that except as discussed below, your employer (or individual managers, or even coworkers) has the right to make your work environment as hostile as it likes. That is, there is NO legal prohibition on a workplace being hostile--unprofessional, insulting, rude, even cruel--and so there is no legal claim for compensation for experiencing a hostile work environment. It is simply something that many people have to put up with.
The exception is that the hostility cannot be directed at you due to your inclusion in one of a small number of protected categories. The main ones are race, sex, religion, age over 40, or disability (some states add additional categories, like national origin or sexual orientation). If, for example, you are experiencing hostility because you are, say, a woman, or African American, that is illegal; in that case, you may have a claim for workplace discrimination, and could try contacting either your state equal/civil rights agency, or the federal EEOC, to file a complaint.
But if the hostility is not based on hostility towards a protected category--for example, your boss either is simply a mean-spirited jerk, or dislikes you personally--there is nothing you can do about it other than seek other employment.
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