Sexual harassment in finance is nothing new. Finance is a highly competitive, testosterone-dominated business. Certain asset classes are overwhelmingly male, leaving female colleagues alienated and subjected to working environments that may be hostile and sexist. However, that does not mean that men cannot also be sexually harassed in the financial industry. Same-sex sexual harassment and women harassing men is also a problem in a culture where everyone is in it to win it.
Intimidation, thinning out the herd and treating people like objects is business as usual. Emotions and feelings are not good for business. If you cannot handle some not so subtle sex-based joking and a little offensive banter, you have no business being in finance. Or, so they would have you think.
Call Winer, Burritt & Scott, LLP, at (510) 433-1000 for a free consultation with one of our banking and financial industry harassment attorneys.
What Can You Do About Banking & Financial Industry Harassment?
At Winer, Burritt & Scott, LLP, we offer free case evaluations. Our attorneys are discreet, and every conversation is completely confidential. We understand that you have worked hard for your career, and we would not want to do anything to jeopardize your career unnecessarily. Any attorney should work in your best interests, protecting your rights and guiding you through the appropriate legal process.
How Is Sexual Harassment Defined?
In the banking and financial industries, this might be a difficult question for a boss or an employer to answer. They may turn a blind eye to subtle forms of offensive behavior, and they may be unwilling to address something that they think would upset the balance of the firm. They may even be the harasser, requesting sexual favors or suggesting a mutually beneficial quid pro quo exchange of favors.
This makes for a hostile work environment. Even most subtle forms of unwelcome and offensive behavior qualify as sexual harassment. Generally, sexual harassment is an unwelcome and unwanted behavior that is sexually suggestive, including touching, leering looks, innuendos, jokes, drawings, emails, notes, pictures, comments about someone’s body, offensive gestures, degrading words, and gender discrimination.
Have You Been Harassed? Contact Winer, Burritt & Scott, LLP.
Whether it took place in the office or at a work-related function, you can file a complaint with the help of an experienced lawyer. Co-workers, managers, employers, clients, board members and business partners are all culpable, and employers are often strictly liable. Email or call us at (510) 433-1000 for a free case evaluation. We pursue all cases on a contingency fee basis, and we handle claims throughout California.
**We do not represent perpetrators of sexual harassment or those who are accused of sexually harassing behavior.