Sexual Harassment Disciplinary Training in Oklahoma
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- Sexual Harassment Disciplinary Training in Oklahoma
Providing onsite Sexual Harassment seminars & Disciplinary training in the following cities:
OKLAHOMA CITY | TULSA | NORMAN
During our one-one-one Harassment Disciplinary and Awareness Training your employee will be challenged & counseled by our top level trainers. They will learn precisely what violations of your company’s policies, EEOC laws that govern harassment & individual statues, theyhave violated.
These counseling sessions are highly interactive, which we guarantee that your employee will know & understand the standards concerning the workplace & especially the Common Sense factor.
Your employee will take a Pre-Test & Post-Test to determine their exact level of knowledge & retention. This also will become a permanent part of their personnel file, along with several appropriate handouts. Our confidential written summary and professional recommendations, will make sure that your employee comprehends the exact legal statues, company guidelines & “Zero Tolerance” of future problems.
THE EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION (EEOC) DEFINES SEXUAL HARASSMENT AS FOLLOWS:
- EXPLICITLY OR IMPLICITLY AFFECTS AN INDIVIDUAL’S EMPLOYMENT
- UNREASONABLY INTERFERES WITH AN INDIVIDUAL’S WORK PERFORMANCE
- CREATES AN INTIMIDATING, HOSTILE, OR OFFENSIVE WORK ENVIRONMENT
WORKPLACE HARASSMENT, WHICH INCLUDES SEXUAL HARASSMENT, IS PROHIBITED BY TITLE VII OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964 WHICH PROHIBITS EMPLOYERS WITH 15 OR MORE EMPLOYEES FROM DISCRIMINATING ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, SEX, RELIGION, OR NATIONAL ORIGIN. THE LAW APPLIES TO FEDERAL, STATE, AND LOCAL EMPLOYERS AND GOVERNS ALL EMPLOYMENT ACTIONS. LAWS REGARDING WORKPLACE HARASSMENT ARE ENFORCED BY THE US EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION (EEOC).
IN ADDITION, SIX STATES (CALIFORNIA, CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, ILLINOIS, MAINE, AND NEW YORK) HAVE THEIR OWN STATE LAWS SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSING SEXUAL HARASSMENT:
- CALIFORNIA – AB 1825, AB 2053, SB 396, SB 1300, SB 1343
- CONNECTICUT – CONNECTICUT HUMAN RIGHTS AND OPPORTUNITY ACT, TIME’S UP ACT
- DELAWARE – HB 360
- ILLINOIS – SB 0075 ILLINOIS HUMAN RIGHTS ACT, WORK TRANSPARENCY ACT
- MAINE – MAINE EMPLOYMENT LAWS REVISED STATUTE, TITLE 26, SECTION 807
- NEW YORK – NEW YORK HUMAN RIGHTS LAW § 296.1, NEW YORK CITY STOP SEXUAL HARASSMENT
Oklahoma Disciplinary Harassment updates
Sexual Harassment and Respect in the Oklahoma Legal Workplace
By Katherine Mazaheri and Daniel Zonas
Navigating the workplace as an attorney can be like stepping into a minefield of potential liability; one misstep and you could land in your boss’s office, the Human Resources Division or under the scrutiny of the bar association due to a grievance or a bar complaint. Our profession requires a unique balance of making a good impression, respecting others in the workplace and getting things done in a high-stress environment. After 16 years of practicing law, owning a business and mentoring law students and new lawyers, I have cautionary advice for my new colleagues that will help to ensure not just that you are respected at work but that you respect others. By the time you are through with this article, I want you to understand what the climate of the legal workplace looks like today, what type of behavior is expected from you as a member and what may constitute illegal or unethical sexual harassment.
FUNDAMENTAL CHANGES IN WORKPLACE CULTURE:
The culture of the legal workplace has changed significantly, even in the last 16 years. If you came out of law school when I did, you would have been exposed to a different set of spoken and unspoken rules than what you may see today. To look and act like a lawyer meant you had to play by a typical male lawyer’s rules. As a woman, you dressed the part: stockings with your hair pulled back and a skirt suit if you were interviewing or appearing before a judge. You laughed off inappropriate comments in interviews where partners would mention your looks or tell you about how sex sells as a new lawyer. You learned the rules of the game. You knew who was in charge, so you compromised your own values and interests and tried not to stand out so that you could ultimately advance your career.
Things are different in today’s society and corporate climate. Women are progressing and evolving into the majority in the legal world. In recent years, there have been more female law students than male law students.
[1] The OU College of Law saw an 11% jump in female enrollment in 2018, and the female class population has been above 50% every year since.
[2] Right now, about 42% of law school deans are female, doubling from 21% in 2014.
[3] If male lawyers aren’t already outnumbered, they will be soon.
In turn, increased female representation and a new generation of innovative and progressive professionals have positively impacted the legal workplace. The #MeToo movement created a new awareness of previously overlooked sexual harassment problems by educating people and stimulating workplace trainings to enhance preventative measures against sexual harassment.
[4] Overt plays at sexual harassment and assault are now less common, and sexual harassment charges under the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have substantially decreased.
[5] The days where sexual harassment was tolerated or even condoned are over and have been replaced by a paradigm shift championing an equitable and diverse society where women should have equal opportunities and leadership roles.
