Legal Question in Sexual Harassment in Missouri

questions about sexual harassment

questions cannot be answered without speaking to you directly. call me, there is no charage

The accused harasser, too, has rights in the workplace

Yes, you have the right to defend yourself against any accusation. Ask if the alleged complaints are in writing. If they were put into writing, you have a right to see them. If the complaints were oral, you have a right to learn whether they were reduced to writing by someone in the HR dept. Certainly yu want to know who complained. Often employers will try to hide the name of the complainants on the grounds that they fear what the accused will do to them because they told. Hey, you have a right to confrontation. By confrontation, I do not mean verbal or physical confrontation. I mean legal confrontation, the right to examine and/or cross-examine the accuser. This should be done by your lawyer . . . not by you. You MUST MUST MUST stay away from those you believe complained. You do not want to do anything -- even things you believe are innocent -- which may be distorted by the accusER or someone else in the employ of the company or by the lawyer(s) of the complainant(s). Anonymity is an issue that can get complicated. It may be also that you work for an institution which has a grievance committee and grievance hearings. Often those grievance hearings are run according to the employer's rules not the usual rules of evidence which would apply in a court of law. So you must be careful not to submit to a process that can be used against you later. But I do not know whether it is mandatory that you submit to such a hearing. I don't know what you signed when you took the job . . . or even how long you have been on the job.You have not revealed enough to get into that subject here. Remember, the company is interested in avoiding being sued not only by the accuser but also by you for wrongful termination. I do not knowwhether MO law allows an employee to be terminated withOUT just cause. Consult a MO attorney to learn what law is applicable to your situation. You also allude to having been warned on a prior occasion. While that does not bode well, you haven't supplied enough details for me to comment more about it.Lastly, the aftter-hours business on the employer's premises. Who would have been expected to be OFF the premises? You or the accuser(s)?Outside of business hours will not alleviate the employer's concern: the employer can be subject to premise liability:that is, the employer can be held responsible if security was lax in some way that harm came to an employee who was lawfully on the premises.Nevertheless, you still have a right to learn who complained and of what he/she/they complained. Suggestion: You might want to file at the state discrimination commission for reverse discrimination to keep the company from firing you ...it would look like retaliation. But run, do not stop at GO, to a local lawyer to get good solid advice based on MO law.