Emotional Harrassment

[jenniferwhitman]

Hello my name is Jennifer, I live in Pennsylvania. I am at a job where I and my other co-worker are constantly being slandered and treated very unprofessionally. We have told our boss about it and seeing as he is a long time friend of our office manager he insists he is doing nothing about it. It is a doctor's office in Gettysburg, PA. We've been told we are stupid, we don't do anything right, while one of us is not there the other one gets told all kinds of nasty stuff about our families. Since our boss has not tried to do anything about it, I wanted to know what I can do. It's awful to have to work under someone and feel like your underminded in everything you try to do, especially when the boss is happy with what you are doing. I need help with this. Thank you for whatever help you can give me.

 

[jenniferwhitman]

Hello my name is Jennifer, I live in Pennsylvania. I am at a job where I and my other co-worker are constantly being slandered and treated very unprofessionally. We have told our boss about it and seeing as he is a long time friend of our office manager he insists he is doing nothing about it. It is a doctor's office in Gettysburg, PA. We've been told we are stupid, we don't do anything right, while one of us is not there the other one gets told all kinds of nasty stuff about our families. Since our boss has not tried to do anything about it, I wanted to know what I can do. It's awful to have to work under someone and feel like your underminded in everything you try to do, especially when the boss is happy with what you are doing. I need help with this. Thank you for whatever help you can give me.

 

[Beth3]

I take it that it's the office manager making these statements.

It's unfortunate that your boss isn't doing anything about this. Putting aside that it's just plain wrong for someone to behave this way, the boss is foolishly running the risk of losing two good employees when they decide they aren't going to work in this kind of environment any longer and find other jobs.

Unless the OM is singling you and your co-worker out for this abuse because of your race, age, gender, religion, etc., it's not unlawful. Basically, being a world class jerk is not against the law.

There is a cause of action typically referred to as "intentional infliction of emotional distress" that may apply, however the behavior truly has to be egregious to meet the legal standard. What you describe probably doesn't rise to that level but you may wish to consult with an attorney as this is a case law issue, not one that is addressed in any statutory regulations.