Legal Question in Employment Law in Florida
Intimidation in the workplace
The manager in my wife's office has a history of singling out people and directing unwarranted hostility and intimidation towards them. She has exaggerated or invented issues as justification. She is a friend of the owner who refuses to address the issue. I have searched both FL and US Dept. of Labor laws which are either too ambiguous or advanced for the layman. Mostly I find issues of discrimination relating to race, color, religion, etc.; but I am having trouble finding issues of deliberate and individual acts of systematic intimidation and the creation of a hostile working environment. IE: When a complaint was addressed to the owner in regards to this manager, my wife was disciplined for involving him and was told she could not do so. I was under the impression that it's illegal to deny anyone the ability to address a grievance with management. The mngr. eavesdrops on phone conversations without any sort of prior notification, has disciplined employees with no explanation of cause. The place has no written policy manual or handbook, and apparently no means to redress grievances with management. The staff is constantly on edge and walking on tiptoes to avoid the next explosion from this manager. What can be done ?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Intimidation in the workplace
Your research was accurate. There are no laws prohibiting general harassment or mistreatment of employees, except in the most extreme cases.
There is no law guaranteeing access to managment. Eavesdropping on phone conversations in an office environment is one of the exceptions to Florida law, which makes it otherwise unlawful to do it.
These are general comments and are not intended as legal advice.
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