Legal Question in Employment Law in Virginia

Re: inapropriate sexual misconduct

Federal antidiscrimination law recognizes two basic types of illegal sexual conduct in a workplace environment:

1. The so-called Quid Pro Quo type where sexual favors are coerced from an employee in return for tangible benefits such as promotions, salary increases or other benefits, and

2. The so-called Hostile Work Environment situation

where an employee is harassed on several or more occasions by fellow employee(s)(with supervisor's knowledge) and/or by supervisor(s)him/herself with sexually oriented comments and/or exposure to sexually oriented materials such as to cause the employee to feel uncomfortable and perhaps victimized in her/his workplace environment.