E-Mail Harassment Case Settles for £10,000

A woman who discovered nine of her colleagues had circulated obscene e-mails about her has received £10,000 compensation after settling her sexual harassment case against her former employer, Holden Meehan Financial Advisers Ltd. Her case was supported by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC).

The Sales Support Administrator and Personal Assistant discovered the e-mails inadvertently after she was given access to a colleague's e-mail folders while he was on extended leave. She made a formal complaint, which she felt was not treated seriously. Eventually she felt she had no choice other than to resign.

Julie Mellor, Chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission, said:

"Various high profile media stories in recent years should not have left any room for doubt about the dangers of people mis-using e-mail at work. All employers should make their staff aware that sexual harassment can take many forms and can be deeply distressing for the person on the receiving end. This needs to be made clear in harassment and IT policies."

The woman claimed she was ostracised by her colleagues after she made the complaint. When she informed the office manager that she was being victimised she was told to 'imagine how the others feel, some of them are losing their jobs'.

[IT and E-mail Policy and Management Guide, version 1.0 (ISBN 1-900648-37-7, £34.99) and Equal Opportunities Policy and Management Guide, version 1.0 (ISBN 1-900648-64-4, £29.99), available in MS Word and Adobe Acrobat pdf format as an electronic download from the Workplacelaw Network website - www.workplacelaw.net/eshop - or by calling 0870 777 8881. 10% discount available to members of the Workplacelaw Network, BIFM, RICS, IFMA or RIBA. Please quote ref. 1319 when ordering.]
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