What is the legal definition of harassment? At least a few times a year, one of your managers, or one of their employees, will get into a situation and need to ask, “What is the legal definition of harassment?” Now, while this is usually a very loaded and stress inducing question to be asked by a manager, this article will just focus on giving you an overview of the legal definition.   So, what is the legal definition of harassment? Harassment is a kind of discrimination that can erupt from a handful of different categories. First, let’s highlight a few of the different types: Sexual harassment Unwanted sexually explicit words or advances, gestures and images. Applying a positive or negative personnel action based on accepting or refusing sexual advances. Can also be based on negative treatment on the basis of gender. Race harassment Most often occurs as offensive comments, jokes, gestures. Includes even when the victim and harasser are the same race. Religiou ...

Types of workplace harassment Workplace harassment comes in a variety of deliveries and categories.   The harassment delivery mediums include: In person In writing By telephone Via e-mail Types of workplace harassment can also occur through any other means of communication. (text messaging, instant messaging) Harassment can be physical, verbal or visual. Examples of verbal harassment include but are not limited to unwelcome comments, jokes, insults and name-calling. It can include any other words and conduct that demean, stigmatize, intimidate, or single out a person because of his or her sex, race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability or other legally protected status.   Examples of physical or visual types of workplace harassment include but are not limited to unwelcome physical contact, damaging personal property, possession or display of derogatory pictures or other graphic materials.   The most frequent types of workplace harassment occ ...

  U.S. Child Labor Laws - Changes that may affect your business   The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Child-Labor Regulations have recently been revised. On July, 19, 2010, the final revisions to the child-labor regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act will become legally effective.   The Department of Labor has been receiving comments on these most recent suggested regulation changes to the U.S. child labor laws since 2007. The DOL states that these revisions are supposed to make it easier for people under that age if 18 to get a job. These revisions only apply to non-agricultural positions. The Department of Labor (DOL) is scheduled to revise the provisions concerning minors in agricultural employment. The revisions single out industries like banking, information technology and advertising.    While the regulations offer an array of rules to follow, the most recent revisions address specific issues:   There is a provision permitting 14 and 15 year olds to wo ...

  Your Employee’s Work email expectation of privacy – New Supreme Court Decision adds some clarity. The latest Supreme Court ruling help that a California police department’s review of sexually charged text messages sent by the officer to his wife and to his mistress from his employer-issued pager, did not constitute an invasion of the employee’s privacy. This overturned a previous ruling by the 9th Circuit. (Link to the full opinion in City of Ontario v. Quon).   As a business owner, you should take note that the Supreme Court’s decision was largely motivated by concept that the police department’s review of the messages was in line with its policy and was conducted for a valid business reason. Also, that the implications of the decision on the employees texts in this case could also be seen to apply to the work email expectation of privacy for the average employee.   The officer had exceeded the allotted monthly number of messaged approved for his tex ...

  DOL says you may have to compensate employees for time spent putting on protective equipment required by law. The new Department of Labor’s (DOL) Administrator’s Interpretation, issued by Deputy Administrator Nancy J. Leppink), concerns whether you have to pay for the time employees use to change put on and take off protective equipment required by law. It’s entitles “SUBJECT: Section 3(o) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C.  203(o), and the definition of clothes.” (Administrator's Interpretation No. 2010-2)   Under the Fair Labor and Standards Act, you don’t have to pay employees for their time spend changing clothes or washing at the beginning or end of each workday. But, this new Administrator’s Interpretation explains that safety equipment is going to be treated separately, and that changing into and out of protective equipment required by law is now time that your employees will be compensated for.   So, if your employees ar ...