What Happens If I Quit Because of Sexual Harassment?
We have worked with many people who felt that they had to quit or resign because of pervasive sexual harassment. This is of course your absolute right- Massachusetts is an at will employment state, and you have no duty to remain in a job that is causing you damage.
There are a few things you should know before making that decision. First, you have the right to report the harassment to management and ask that they do something about it. Your employer is not allowed to fire you or take other adverse action in retaliation for making that complaint. Second, if you resign and later seek legal remedies for the harassment, you may be limited in what you can recover unless you can establish that the situation was bad enough to amount to a "constructive discharge." This means that the behavior was sufficiently pervasive that no reasonable person would continue working in that environment. It almost always feels like that if you are thinking about quitting, but it is a good idea to speak with an employment lawyer before making that decision to see if your situation meets the legal standard. Learn more here about constructive discharge in Massachusetts. |
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