Supervisor Liability

Various court cases in California have determined to what extent supervisors are liable for harassment conduct at work. Here is a breakdown of the findings:

• Supervisors who sexually harass employees can be held personally liable. This means that the employer is not always responsible for paying for legal fees related to workplace sexual harassment. The supervisor's personal assets are also at risk.
• However, a supervisor who was not the harasser is not personally liable if he or she does not take proper action to stop known sexual harassment.
• In the cases of retaliation, supervisors are not personally liable. In a case titled Jones v. The Lodge at Torrey Pines Partnership, the California Supreme Court ruled that retaliation is different from harassment. While supervisors can be held personally liable for sexual harassment, they cannot be held personally liable for retaliation.

Each court case continually changes the state's definition of liability. It is important to remember that new court cases could find new facets of this term. In the end, avoiding sexual harassment at all costs is the only way to avoid liability.

To learn more about Sexual Harassment Prevention For Employees visit our Cal/OSHA Sexual Harassment Prevention For Employees Online Training web page.