Your rights
Sexual harassment and a hostile work environment: what the law says and what you can do
Key points
- Two forms
- Sexual harassment is illegal when a job decision depends on accepting or rejecting sexual advances (quid pro quo), or when it is severe or pervasive enough to create a hostile work environment.
- Who is covered
- Federal law: employers with 15 or more employees. California and New York cover harassment at employers of any size, and Texas covers sexual harassment at employers with one or more employees.
- Speaking up
- Reporting harassment, filing a complaint or answering questions in an investigation is protected. Punishing you for it is retaliation, which is illegal on its own.
- Deadlines
- EEOC: 180 or 300 days from the last incident. State agencies: 3 years in California and New York, 300 days for sexual harassment in Texas, 365 days in Florida.
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Sexual harassment at work is a form of sex discrimination, and federal law and the law of California, Texas, Florida and New York all make it illegal. It can be unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, and it can also be offensive remarks about a person's sex. A hostile work environment is harassment so severe or so frequent that a reasonable person in your position would find the situation abusive.
Below: the two legal forms, what is and is not a hostile work environment, who is covered in each state, when the employer is responsible, how to report it at work, retaliation, the deadlines to file a complaint with the EEOC or a state agency, and what a nondisclosure or arbitration agreement can and can't stop. This page explains the law; it is not legal advice about your situation.
How to file a charge with the EEOC, step by step, is on the EEOC complaint page; this page covers what sexual harassment is, who is covered, and the state agencies' deadlines.
What is sexual harassment at work?
- What it covers
- Advances, requests, conductunwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature. EEOC: Sexual Harassment
- Who can harass
- Anyone at worka supervisor, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker, or a non-employee such as a client or customer. EEOC: Sexual Harassment
- Where
- In person or onlineunlawful harassment can occur in a physical work environment or a virtual one. EEOC: Harassment at Work Q&A
- Federal law
- Title VIIof the Civil Rights Act of 1964, for employers with 15 or more employees. EEOC: Fact Sheet · 42 U.S.C. § 2000e
The EEOC, the federal agency that enforces the laws against discrimination at work, says harassment does not have to be of a sexual nature: offensive remarks about a person's sex count too, such as offensive comments about women in general. The victim and the harasser can be a woman or a man, and they can be the same sex. Sexual harassment also does not need to be based on sexual desire; it can be behavior meant to embarrass, intimidate or belittle a person because of their sex. EEOC: Sexual Harassment · EEOC: Harassment at Work Q&A
The conduct must be unwelcome. The victim does not have to be the person harassed: it can be anyone affected by the offensive conduct. And sexual harassment can be unlawful without any economic injury to the victim, or a firing. EEOC: Fact Sheet
Federal law protects against harassment based on other traits too: race, color, religion, national origin, age (40 or older), disability and genetic information. The EEOC counts sexual orientation, transgender status and pregnancy as part of sex. The same federal rules apply to all of them; a few state rules on this page, like Texas's, are written for sexual harassment only. EEOC: Harassment
Quid pro quo and hostile work environment: the two forms
The EEOC's guidelines define two types of sexual harassment: "quid pro quo" and "hostile environment." Under the federal regulation, unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature are sexual harassment when: EEOC: Policy Guidance on Sexual Harassment
- Submitting to the conduct is made, explicitly or implicitly, a term or condition of your job;
- Submitting to it or rejecting it is used as the basis for decisions about your job; or
- It has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with your work performance, or of creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. 29 C.F.R. § 1604.11
| Quid pro quo | Hostile work environment | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A change to your job because you rejected sexual advances: for example, being fired, demoted, denied a promotion or transfer, reassigned, or given fewer hours or less pay. EEOC: Small Business Fact Sheet | Harassing conduct so severe or frequent (courts use the word "pervasive") that a reasonable person in your position would find the situation abusive. EEOC: Small Business Fact Sheet |
| Who does it | Someone who can affect your job. The EEOC's examples include threatening a person's job, or offering preferential treatment in exchange for sexual favors. EEOC: Small Business Fact Sheet | A supervisor, a co-worker, or someone who is not an employee, such as a client or customer. EEOC: Sexual Harassment |
| One incident? | A single sexual advance may be harassment if it is linked to the granting or denial of employment benefits. EEOC: Policy Guidance on Sexual Harassment | Under federal law, unless the conduct is quite severe, a single incident or isolated incidents generally do not create an abusive environment. EEOC: Policy Guidance on Sexual Harassment |
What is considered a hostile work environment?
Under federal law, harassment creates a hostile work environment when it is so severe or so frequent that a reasonable person in your position would find the situation abusive, and you actually find it abusive. The law doesn't prohibit simple teasing, offhand comments or isolated incidents that are not very serious. EEOC: Harassment at Work Q&A · EEOC: Sexual Harassment
Examples the EEOC gives of harassing conduct based on sex:
- Saying or writing a sex-based slur.
- Forwarding an offensive or derogatory "joke" email.
- Sharing pornography or sexually demeaning depictions of people, including AI-generated and deepfake images and videos.
- Asking intrusive questions about a person's sexual orientation, gender transition or intimate body parts.
- Making sexualized gestures or comments, even when the behavior is not motivated by a desire to have sex.
- Groping, touching or otherwise physically assaulting a person. EEOC: Small Business Fact Sheet
What is usually not illegal on its own. Personality conflicts, disagreements or incompatibility with a boss or a co-worker are not covered by the federal laws unless the conduct is based on sex or another protected trait. Petty slights, annoyances and isolated incidents, unless extremely serious, will not rise to the level of illegality. EEOC: Harassment at Work Q&A · EEOC: Harassment
States can set a different bar. California and New York make it easier to show a hostile work environment than federal law does:
| Law | The standard |
|---|---|
| Federal (Title VII) | Conduct severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile or abusive. EEOC: Harassment |
| California | A single incident of harassing conduct is enough to go to trial if it unreasonably interfered with the person's work performance or created an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. The standard for sexual harassment should not vary by type of workplace. Cal. Gov. Code § 12923 |
| New York | Harassment is unlawful regardless of whether it would be considered severe or pervasive, when it subjects a person to inferior terms, conditions or privileges of employment. The employer's defense is that it did not rise above what a reasonable victim would consider petty slights or trivial inconveniences. N.Y. Exec. Law § 296 |
| Texas | Sexual harassment includes conduct that has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with work performance, or of creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. Tex. Lab. Code § 21.141 |
| Florida | Discriminating against a person because of sex with respect to the terms, conditions or privileges of employment is an unlawful employment practice. Fla. Stat. § 760.10 |
Who is covered: federal law and your state
Federal law covers employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local governments, and it also applies to employment agencies, labor organizations and the federal government. State laws often reach further, and some cover every employer. EEOC: Fact Sheet
| Law | Employers covered for harassment | Where to file |
|---|---|---|
| Federal: Title VII | 15 or more employees. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e | The EEOC |
| California: Fair Employment and Housing Act | Any employer regularly employing one or more persons, for harassment; 5 or more for discrimination and for harassment training. Cal. Gov. Code § 12940 · CRD: Employment | The Civil Rights Department (CRD) |
| New York: Executive Law | All employers within the state. N.Y. Exec. Law § 292 | The Division of Human Rights N.Y. Exec. Law § 293 |
| Texas: Labor Code chapter 21 | One or more employees, for sexual harassment; 15 or more for other discrimination. Tex. Lab. Code §§ 21.002, 21.141 | The Texas Workforce Commission |
| Florida: Florida Civil Rights Act | 15 or more employees. Fla. Stat. § 760.02 | The Florida Commission on Human Relations |
In California, the harassment rule protects employees, applicants, unpaid interns and volunteers, and people providing services under a contract. An employee who harasses is personally liable, whether or not the employer knew about it. Cal. Gov. Code § 12940
The agencies can share a complaint. In Florida, a complaint may be filed with the EEOC instead of the state commission, and the earliest filing date with either one counts as the filing date. Fla. Stat. § 760.11
When the employer is responsible
- A supervisor, with a job consequence. The employer is automatically liable for a supervisor's harassment that results in a negative employment action, such as a firing, a failure to promote or hire, or a loss of wages.EEOC: Harassment
- A supervisor, without one. If a supervisor's harassment creates a hostile work environment, the employer can avoid liability only by proving that it reasonably tried to prevent and promptly correct the behavior, and that the employee unreasonably failed to use the preventive or corrective opportunities it provided.EEOC: Harassment
- A co-worker or a non-employee. The employer is liable if it knew, or should have known, about the harassment and failed to take prompt and appropriate corrective action. For non-employees, such as customers or contractors, the extent of the employer's control over them is considered.EEOC: Harassment · 29 C.F.R. § 1604.11
- California. An employer must take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment, and failing to do so is unlawful on its own. Employers with five or more employees must give supervisors at least two hours, and other employees at least one hour, of sexual harassment training, once every two years.Cal. Gov. Code §§ 12940, 12950.1
- Texas. An employer commits an unlawful employment practice if it, or its agents or supervisors, knew or should have known about the sexual harassment and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action.Tex. Lab. Code § 21.142
- New York. The fact that a person did not complain to the employer about the harassment does not by itself decide whether the employer is liable.N.Y. Exec. Law § 296
How to report sexual harassment at work
The EEOC encourages employees to report harassment to management at an early stage, to prevent it from getting worse. Under the rules above, what the employer knew, and whether the employee used the employer's complaint process, can decide whether the employer is liable. EEOC: Harassment
- Find the policy. Your employer may have an anti-harassment policy that explains how to report harassment. EEOC: Harassment at Work Q&A
- Tell the employer. The EEOC says that if you don't feel comfortable confronting the harasser, or the harassment does not stop, you should tell your employer, and use any complaint or grievance process it has. EEOC: Harassment at Work Q&A · EEOC: Fact Sheet
- Keep track of the facts. If you later file with a state agency, California's Civil Rights Department asks for the specific facts and any records about the incidents, copies of documents or other evidence, and the names and contact information of any witnesses. CRD: Complaint Process
- Take part in the investigation. If your employer investigates, answering questions during that investigation is protected: the employer may not retaliate against you for it. EEOC: Retaliation
- File outside the company if you choose. You can file a complaint with the EEOC or your state agency within the deadlines below, which in harassment cases run from the last incident. EEOC: Time Limits
Retaliation for reporting harassment is illegal
Federal law makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an employee or applicant because they opposed an unlawful practice, or because they made a charge, testified, assisted or participated in an investigation, proceeding or hearing. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-3
The EEOC lists these among the acts that are protected:
- Filing or being a witness in an EEO charge, complaint, investigation or lawsuit.
- Communicating with a supervisor or manager about discrimination, including harassment.
- Answering questions during an employer investigation of alleged harassment.
- Resisting sexual advances, or intervening to protect others. EEOC: Retaliation
Depending on the facts, retaliation can be a lower performance review, a transfer to a less desirable position, verbal or physical abuse, more scrutiny, false rumors, or a schedule changed to make work harder. Employers can still discipline or fire workers for reasons that are not retaliatory or discriminatory. EEOC: Retaliation
State laws say the same. California, New York, Texas and Florida each make it unlawful to punish a person who opposed a forbidden practice, filed a complaint, or testified or assisted in a proceeding. Cal. Gov. Code § 12940 · N.Y. Exec. Law § 296 · Tex. Lab. Code § 21.055 · Fla. Stat. § 760.10
Deadlines to file a sexual harassment complaint
You can file a complaint with the EEOC, with your state's agency, or with both. Each has its own deadline. In harassment cases, the EEOC deadline runs from the last incident of harassment, and the EEOC still looks at all the incidents, even earlier ones. EEOC: Time Limits
| Where | Deadline | Counted from |
|---|---|---|
| EEOC | 180 days, or 300 days if a state or local agency enforces a law against the same kind of discrimination. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5 · EEOC: Time Limits | The last incident of harassment |
| Federal employees and applicants | Contact the agency's EEO Counselor, generally within 45 days. EEOC: Federal Sector | The day the discrimination occurred |
| California: CRD | 3 years. Cal. Gov. Code § 12960 · CRD: Complaint Process | The date you were last harmed |
| New York: Division of Human Rights | 3 years. N.Y. Exec. Law § 297 | The unlawful discriminatory practice |
| Texas Workforce Commission | 300 days for sexual harassment; 180 days for other complaints. Tex. Lab. Code § 21.202 | The day the harassment occurred |
| Florida Commission on Human Relations | 365 days. Fla. Stat. § 760.11 | The alleged violation |
- Weekends and holidays count. If the EEOC deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, you have until the next business day. EEOC: Time Limits
- In California, you must file with the CRD even if you want to go to court, and you can ask for an immediate Right-to-Sue notice when you file. CRD: Employment
- In Texas, after you receive a notice of the right to file a civil action, you have 60 days to sue, and no later than the second anniversary of filing the complaint. Tex. Lab. Code §§ 21.254, 21.256
- If you aren't sure how much time is left, contact the EEOC or the state agency as soon as possible. EEOC: Time Limits
How to file an EEOC charge, from the online portal to the intake interview and the right-to-sue letter, is on the EEOC complaint page. You can start in the EEOC Public Portal, or call 1-800-669-4000 to discuss your situation; the EEOC does not take charges over the phone. EEOC: How to File a Charge
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NDAs, arbitration agreements and speaking up
Two federal laws limit agreements that would keep a sexual harassment claim quiet or out of court, and California adds its own rule for settlements.
- Nondisclosure and nondisparagement clauses. Under the Speak Out Act, a nondisclosure or nondisparagement clause agreed to before a sexual harassment dispute arises is not judicially enforceable where the conduct is alleged to violate federal, tribal or state law. An employer and an employee can still protect trade secrets or proprietary information.42 U.S.C. §§ 19402, 19403
- Forced arbitration. At the election of the person alleging sexual harassment, a predispute arbitration agreement or joint-action waiver is not valid or enforceable for a case that relates to the sexual harassment dispute. A court, not an arbitrator, decides whether this applies. It covers disputes that arose or accrued on or after March 3, 2022.9 U.S.C. §§ 401, 402
- California settlements. A settlement agreement may not prevent the disclosure of factual information about a claim of sexual harassment, or of workplace harassment, filed in court or with an agency. At the claimant's request it can shield the claimant's identity, and it can keep the amount paid confidential.Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1001
Getting help
California's Civil Rights Department, for example, investigates complaints, may try to resolve them through conciliation or mediation, and, if it finds reasonable cause, may file a lawsuit. You don't have to use its investigation: you can file your own lawsuit after getting a Right-to-Sue notice. CRD: Complaint Process
Common questions
What is considered sexual harassment at work?
Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, as well as offensive remarks about a person's sex. It is illegal when a job decision depends on it, or when it is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment.
What is a hostile work environment?
Harassment based on sex or another protected trait that is so severe or so frequent that a reasonable person in your position would find the situation abusive. Simple teasing, offhand comments and isolated incidents that are not very serious are not enough under federal law; California and New York set a lower bar.
What is quid pro quo harassment?
When submitting to or rejecting sexual advances is used as the basis for decisions about your job, such as being fired, demoted or given less pay for rejecting a supervisor's advances. A single advance can be enough if it is linked to a job benefit.
Can one incident be sexual harassment?
Yes, in some cases. Under federal law, a single incident can be enough if it is quite severe, or if it is linked to a job decision. In California, a single incident can be enough to go to trial if it unreasonably interfered with the person's work or created a hostile working environment.
Does my employer have to be large for the law to apply?
Not always. Federal law applies to employers with 15 or more employees, and Florida's law to the same size. California covers harassment at employers regularly employing one or more persons, New York covers all employers in the state, and Texas covers sexual harassment at employers with one or more employees.
How do I report sexual harassment at work?
Check your employer's anti-harassment policy and report it to management or HR early, using any complaint process the employer has. You can also file a complaint with the EEOC or your state's agency, within the deadline. Answering questions in the employer's investigation is protected from retaliation.
Can I be fired for reporting sexual harassment?
Not for reporting it. Federal law and the laws of California, New York, Texas and Florida make it unlawful to punish a person for opposing harassment, filing a complaint or taking part in an investigation. An employer can still act for reasons that are not retaliatory.
How long do I have to file a sexual harassment complaint?
180 or 300 days with the EEOC, counted from the last incident; 3 years with California's CRD and New York's Division of Human Rights; 300 days with the Texas Workforce Commission; and 365 days with the Florida Commission on Human Relations. Federal employees generally have 45 days to contact an EEO Counselor.
Does an NDA or an arbitration agreement stop a sexual harassment claim?
Often not. Under the Speak Out Act, a nondisclosure or nondisparagement clause signed before the dispute arose is not judicially enforceable. A person alleging sexual harassment can also choose court over a predispute arbitration agreement, for disputes that arose on or after March 3, 2022.
Official sources
- EEOC: Sexual Harassment eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Harassment eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Fact Sheet: Sexual Harassment Discrimination eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Questions and Answers for Employees: Harassment at Work eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Small Business Fact Sheet: Harassment in the Workplace eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Policy Guidance on Current Issues of Sexual Harassment eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Retaliation eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Time Limits for Filing a Charge eeoc.gov
- EEOC: How to File a Charge of Employment Discrimination eeoc.gov
- EEOC: Overview of the Federal Sector EEO Complaint Process eeoc.gov
- 29 C.F.R. § 1604.11: sexual harassment govinfo.gov
- 42 U.S.C. § 2000e: definitions (employer) govinfo.gov
- 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-3: retaliation govinfo.gov
- 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5: time for filing charges govinfo.gov
- 42 U.S.C. § 19402: Speak Out Act definitions govinfo.gov
- 42 U.S.C. § 19403: nondisclosure and nondisparagement clauses govinfo.gov
- 9 U.S.C. § 401: definitions (predispute arbitration agreement) govinfo.gov
- 9 U.S.C. § 402: arbitration of sexual harassment disputes govinfo.gov
- California Civil Rights Department: Employment calcivilrights.ca.gov
- California Civil Rights Department: Filing a Complaint calcivilrights.ca.gov
- California Government Code § 12923: harassment standards leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Government Code § 12940: unlawful employment practices, harassment, retaliation leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Government Code § 12950.1: sexual harassment training leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Government Code § 12960: time to file with the CRD leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Code of Civil Procedure § 1001: settlement agreements leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- New York Executive Law § 292: definitions (employer) nysenate.gov
- New York Executive Law § 293: Division of Human Rights nysenate.gov
- New York Executive Law § 296: unlawful discriminatory practices, harassment nysenate.gov
- New York Executive Law § 297: procedure, time to file nysenate.gov
- Texas Labor Code, Chapter 21 (§§ 21.002, 21.055, 21.141, 21.142, 21.202, 21.254, 21.256) tcss.legis.texas.gov
- Florida Statutes § 760.02: definitions (employer) flsenate.gov
- Florida Statutes § 760.10: unlawful employment practices flsenate.gov
- Florida Statutes § 760.11: complaints, 365 days flsenate.gov
Related
This page explains the law in general terms. It is not legal advice about your situation. Justice is not a law firm and is not affiliated with any court or government agency.