DETERMINING IF CONDUCT IS HARASSMENT

____ 1. Harassment is discrimination.

Harassment in the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age or
disability constitutes discrimination in the terms, conditions and privileges of
employment and, as such, violates federal law.

____ 2. Harassment defined.

Harassment is verbal or physical conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or

aversion toward an individual because of the individual’s race, color, religion,
gender, national origin, age or disability, or that of the individual’s relatives,
friends or associates and that has the purpose or effect of creating an
intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment; has the purpose or effect
of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance; or
otherwise adversely affects an individual’s employment opportunities.

____ 3. Examples of harassing conduct.

Epithets
Slurs
Negative stereotyping
Threatening, intimidating or hostile acts relating to:
race
color
religion
gender
national origin
age
disability

Written or graphic material that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward

an individual or group based on:
race
color
religion
gender
national origin
age
disability

that is placed on walls, bulletin boards or elsewhere on the premises or

circulated in the workplace.

____ 4. Standard for determining harassment.

 ____ a. Whether a reasonable person in the same or similar circumstances
would find the conduct intimidating, hostile or abusive.

____ The standard includes consideration of the perspective of

persons of the alleged victim’s race, color, religion, gender,
national origin, age or disability.
____ It is not necessary to make an additional showing of
psychological harm.
____ Complaining employee(s) need not be specifically intended
targets of the conduct.

____ 5. Employer’s duty.

____ a. An employer has an affirmative duty to maintain a working

environment that is free of harassment on any of the listed bases.
____ b. Prevention is the best tool for eliminating harassment.