harassment at work

[langaustin]

I was scheduled to work with an individual who had made me feel uncomfortable when I had worked with them previously. When it was brought to the attention of a manger I was told I would be removed without pay and my monthly salary would be reduced. Then after I said that I would contact the EEOC and afterwards finally they reinstated my monthly set pay and corrected the situation, although I fell I should not have been penalized or had to have worried about being penalized. I know this is unlawful when I have read the eeoc documentation and I am waiting to see if the company has nay recourse regarding the matter. How long is a sufficient amount of time for them to answer? Should I file with the EEOC to protect myself to prevent the company from penalizing me? I work under a JCBA and have found that our JCBA is what they quoted when they were going to penalize me and take my pay away I am still checking to make sure that no changes are made.

I work in the state of texas

 

[Taxing Matters]

Let's start with this: what is it that leads you to believe that your employer discriminated against you because of your race, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, religion, age (if you are age 40 or older), disability, or genetic test information? The federal laws that the EEOC enforces prohibit discrimination against employees based on those characteristics. So unless the action of the employer was motivated by one of those protected characteristics in taking the action it did then there is nothing that the EEOC can do.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

Sounds like a manager that made an error and was overridden by the company pretty quick.

But what was your original complaint and what are you upset about now that the situation has been corrected? Were you ever out any actual money?

 

[langaustin]

Just hoping to make a change in the way they handled it and that perhaps in the future if this should happen they will not penalize the person making the claim. I am still watching my paycheck to make sure that it does not change. If I am correct isn't it wrong for a company to penalize someone if the are complaint to them about harassment?
How long does the company have to respond?

 

[Zigner]

If I am correct isn't it wrong for a company to penalize someone if the are complaint to them about harassment?

Answer Taxing Matters' questions first.

 

[langaustin]

Sounds like a manager that made an error and was overridden by the company pretty quick.

But what was your original complaint and what are you upset about now that the situation has been corrected? Were you ever out any actual money?

When it was first brought to their attention I was told I would be penalized by receiving a point on my attendance and then I was told that my pay guaranteed ould be broken for removing me from the (shift) (Trip) I am a flight attendnat... so I was initially penalized and very stressed out that I feel like I was to make a deciosn on working with someone if let uncomfortable with or receiving a point for attendance and my guarantee broken for the month. It was very stressful that this was even being discussed when I felt the issue at hand working with this individual was causing me even more stress.

 

[langaustin]

Never out actually money but our company does not communicate effectively so I am keeping an eye on my schedule to assure it does not change and my guarantee is not broken. We have a JCBA and so they base this off the JCBA but shouldn't some things like harassment take predecnt over a JCBA especialy if EEOC says its wrong to penalize someone for reporting it.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

You have never told us why you were uncomfortable with the coworker in the first place. If it wasn't something enforced under EEOC or if you were so vague in your statement to your manager that he had no reason to think it was an EEOC related matter you have no EEOC issue.

 

[quincy]

How did the individual you worked with make you feel "uncomfortable?" What exactly did this individual do?

 

[Taxing Matters]

We have a JCBA and so they base this off the JCBA but shouldn't some things like harassment take predecnt over a JCBA especialy if EEOC says its wrong to penalize someone for reporting it.

I asked the question earlier that you still have not answered: what is it that leads you to believe that your employer discriminated against you because of your race, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, religion, age (if you are age 40 or older), disability, or genetic test information? I asked that for a specific reason, which is that the EEOC is only concerned with actions of the employer that amount to discrimination based on one of those listed characteristics. If the employer did not discriminate against you based on one of those characterstics then none of the laws that the EEOC enforces have been violated.

A lot of employees seem to think that the law prohibits all harassment of an employee by the employer. That's not true. Federal law prohibits harassment or a hostile work environment (HWE) if that harassment or HWE is based upon illegal discrimination, i.e. because of your race, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, religion, age (if you are age 40 or older), disability, or genetic test information. So if the employer "harasses" you because you are complaining about some other employee and the harassment has nothing to do your race, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, religion, age (if you are age 40 or older), disability, or genetic test information then the harassment does not violate federal law and there is nothing the EEOC can do about it.

So that brings me back to asking what was the illegal discrimination by the employer here? If you cannot pinpoint that then you have nothing here that will interest the EEOC. Some states protect additional characteristics like sexual preference, marital status, and a few others, though Texas does not. So unless your employer illegally discriminated against you based on one of those characteristics I mentioned your only protection here is the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that you apparently have. That is likely why the employer is basing its reversal of your manager's decision on the CBA.

 

[langaustin]

How did the individual you worked with make you feel "uncomfortable?" What exactly did this individual do?

he would braise his hand up against my bottom and never apologized not once but a few times and the nature of his conversations with me

 

[quincy]

he would braise his hand up against my bottom and never apologized not once but a few times and the nature of his conversations with me

Thank you for answering my question.

You are claiming there was sexual harassment and your employer was going to take action against you for reporting it but decided (wisely) not to.

To your knowledge has your employer investigated your complaint and addressed the matter with the individual? Have you had any additional problems with the individual since you reported the harassment to your employer?

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

he would braise his hand up against my bottom and never apologized not once but a few times and the nature of his conversations with me

Did you notify your employer on any of the occasions? Did the manager you mentioned in your first post know anything more than the coworker made you "feel uncomfortable"?

 

[quincy]

Did you notify your employer on any of the occasions? Did the manager you mentioned in your first post know anything more than the coworker made you "feel uncomfortable"?

Specifics matter when filing a complaint. If langaustin was vague in the complaint to the employer, the employer would have been unable to address the problem with the individual.