New Guidance from EEOC on Workplace Harassment

For the first time in nearly 25 years, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has published new guidance on workplace harassment, including over 70 examples and new terminology. We recommend that employers andhttps://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-harassment-workplace HR professionals familiarize themselves with these new definitions and examples.

Test Your Knowledge: Are you familiar with these EEOC terms?

• Intersectional Harassment: This is harassment based on the intersection of two or more protected characteristics. For example, the EEOC explains, “if a woman who is age forty or older is harassed based on stereotypes about older women, this harassment is covered as both age and sex discrimination.”
• Systemic Harassment: When harassment is due to a business practice or policy, it is called as “systemic” harassment since it is not limited to a single incident or occurrence, but rather an entire organization. It is also known as institutionalized harassment. According to the EEOC: “Like other forms of discrimination, harassment can be systemic, subjecting multiple individuals to a similar form of discrimination. If harassment is systemic, then the harassing conduct could subject many, or possibly all, of the employees of a protected group to the same circumstances.”
• Intraclass Harassment: Harassment that is based on the complainant’s protected characteristic is covered even if the harasser is a member of the same protected class as the person who is reporting the harassment. This is known as “intraclass” harassment.
• Intentional Misgendering: Harassing conduct based on sexual orientation or gender identity may include “intentional misgendering,” which occurs when the harasser engages in repeated and deliberate use of a name or pronoun that is inconsistent with the individual’s known gender identity.
• Pregnancy, Childbirth, & Related Medical Conditions: The definition of sexual harassment has been broadened to include harassment based on pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. “This can include issues such as lactation; using or not using contraception; or deciding to have, or not to have an abortion.”

These terms were developed at the Federal level, meaning they apply to every state in the US, not just California, now. Undoubtedly, these issues will continue to come up in workplaces and it is important that supervisors are able to recognize the various forms of harassment to mitigate liability.

Is your staff due for their harassment prevention training? CEA has a variety of training options, from live trainers who will train your employees onsite at your business, live virtual trainings via Zoom, and of course, convenient on-demand courses. CEA members can access free on-demand harassment prevention training at any time through CEA University!