All working professionals spend most of their working week’s productive hours in their workplaces.
Naturally, they form connections and bonds with their coworkers in the process, which helps them spend their time with comparative ease.
But imagine a scenario where a coworker, one of your bosses, or any other individual at work starts acting weird towards you, including passing remarks that are inappropriate and make you feel uncomfortable.
It doesn’t have to be limited to just passing lewd remarks, but also actions that further make it difficult for you to return to the workplace because of the fear and discomfort the whole situation puts you in.
What you might be going through could come under the definition of sexual harassment, and it might be time for you to approach a sexual harassment lawyer to seek advice on what to do next.
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What Can a Sexual Harassment Lawyer Do for You?
Before we dive into the answer to that question, let’s first take a look at a more basic one.
Defining Sexual Harassment
According to legal precedents, any uninvited and unwelcome sexual advance, unwanted request for favors that are sexual in nature, or any other workplace misconduct that has a sexual intention behind it, is sufficient to make the work environment toxic, hostile, and uncomfortable can qualify as sexual harassment.
Some of the misconducts that come under this definition are as follows:
- Staring to make someone feel uncomfortable
- Asking out on dates unwantedly
- Asking for or sending sexually explicit images or videos
- Unwanted inappropriate touching
- Explicit requests for sexual activity
- Being overly friendly unnecessarily, for example, making body contact
- Sharing emails or texts that are sexually explicit
- Passing sexually loaded comments or just being suggestive
It’s crucial to note that offensive comments do not all qualify as sexual harassment, and this is where a sexual harassment lawyer can help you understand if the misconduct that you want to report would be legally seen as sexual harassment.
A sexual harassment lawyer can help you determine the next steps that need to be taken to tackle such a situation that results in discomfort at the workplace.
They can walk you through your rights and help you protect them in a relevant forum.
In addition, a lawyer can work closely with you to help you describe the questionable conduct in required detail for making a solid case for you.
Not only that, a sexual harassment lawyer will stand beside you and help prepare you to deal with the harasser in the event of continued misconduct.
They will advise you on how to report all cases of harassing conduct to human resources or your employer so that they are taken seriously and not brushed aside.
In case your employer isn’t taking appropriate action in the matter, or conversely, taking retaliatory measures against you, a lawyer can help you navigate the situation and help you in protecting yourself and your rights.
What Qualities Should You Look for In a Sexual Harassment Lawyer?
Before you approach a sexual harassment lawyer, you must keep in mind certain qualities that make a good one.
You can only get effective and practical solutions to your problem when you are advised and represented by a lawyer who has relevant experience and knowledge.
So here are some more qualities that you must look for in a prospective lawyer to oversee your sexual harassment case:
1. They Must Have Good Listening Skills
Communication must be a strong suit of a sexual harassment lawyer as they must be ready to hear you out with great detail to fully understand your case.
Listening carefully and reading between the lines must be a quality that they possess, be it their interaction with you — the victim, your adversaries, colleagues, or the judge.
2. Their Approach Must Be Compassionate and Considerate
They must have a compassionate approach towards you as someone in this position is emotionally vulnerable.
Genuinely showing concern towards your problem is a must-have quality. They must be ready to think from your perspective to understand what you might be going through.
3. They Must Have Good Analytical Skills
At the end of the day, what matters the most when a sexual harassment case is brought to a lawyer is their analytical capability to arrive at a logical conclusion.
You should expect them to make the best use of the information provided by you by using their logical reasoning to make a strong case for your cause.
Conclusion
Sexual harassment is one of the most rampant issues faced by workers.
To tackle it head-on and seek appropriate remedies, you must approach a good sexual harassment lawyer, as they can ably guide you in your fight.
