What constitutes Harrasment

[onabreak2]

Hi
I have recently walked out of a job that I had been at for 8 years.

I applied for unemployment benefits and was denied. I am in the process of an appeal and will have a hearing soon. I have to prove to them that I had no other alternative. It was either that or end up in the looney bin.

My office manager kept calling me in to reviews and picking on things that I had supposedly done or not done. As I said I had worked there 8 years and she asked me could I do my job??
How could I answer that question when it was redundant.

I had been doing my job. She had me working and closing up at night and working there on saturdays by myself. Does it not seem to you that if I was not doing my job right I could hardly be left alone.

She has done and said some ridiculous things lately and is a lier and I know she is going to lie about me. I have plenty of character witnesses. I need to know best way to go about this and what constitutes harrassment.

Could go on but dont want to ramble.
Thanks for any advice you can give me.
Ali

 

[cbg]

Whether this constitutes illegal harassment or not depends upon why she's doing it. If it's because of a protected characteristic, it might be. If it's because she doesn't like you, it isn't.

Have you got any ideas?

 

[onabreak2]

Well she cant like me a lot to have treated me the way she has .

I turned 55 is that protected. She has been acting strange lately but over the years 8 years that I have worked there she forced at least 5 people to quit because of her harrassment.

Any ideas.

Thanks in advance

Frogs Have it made They Eat What Bugs Them

 

[cbg]

Age 55 is protected IF that's the reason she's hassling you. But just because you're 55 doesn't automatically mean that's the reason.

You said she's forced 5 people to quit. What, if any, traits do they all have in common? Are they all males? All females? All over 40? All the same race, religion, whatever?

If they all fall into one category, then it MAY be illegal discrimination based on that characteristic. You'll have to give us more information before we can make an informed opinion. However, if there are no factors that they all share, she may be what's been called an "equal opportunity jerk" which, unfortunately, is not illegal.

Not all harassment is illegal, remember. It has to be based on a protected characteristic. She's allowed to just not like you.

 

[Beth3]

The work environment you describe sounds miserable but it's doubtful it rises to a level that will allow you to collect UC benefits. Quitting a job almost always disqualifies an individual from receiving benefits except in very limited circumstances.

And I agree with cbg on the age issue - you can be treated badly in spite of being age 55, just not because of it. The law does not require that you be afforded special treatment because of your age. It only requires that you be afforded the same treatment and opportunities as everyone else. Treating everyone badly is legal; singling one or some ee's out for bad treatment because of their age (or race, or gender, etc.) is not.