undefined
In california, can anyone tell me if there is any law against your boss providing a threatening presence. I have a co worker whom he verbally harrasess daily. If she were to quit, could she collect unemployment because working at this job is actually harming her mentally and could possibly cause health concerns??

undefined
In california, can anyone tell me if there is any law against your boss providing a threatening presence. I have a co worker whom he verbally harrasess daily. If she were to quit, could she collect unemployment because working at this job is actually harming her mentally and could possibly cause health concerns??

Job "harrassment" is usually defined by sexual harrassment or discrimination based on gender, age, creed, etc.

If a boss or another employee is just being unkind or a bully it is not illegal.

Is there a Human Resouces dept. your friend could talk with to file a complaint or at least put on record the problems she is having?

Keep us posted and let us know if you have further questions.
sue

California also is considered to be fairly employee friendly, in terms of workers compensation. People who aharmed by significant stress at work may be able to apply for assistance through workers' compensation. Contact the state's workers' compensation division for more information.

Good luck and let us know if you have any other questions.

UNfortunatly This is a small company and he is the human resources department, he is also the owners son and I am not sure how comfortable she would be in going to him as he is rude and disrespectful as well.

There is nothing in the law, unfortunately, that prohibits a boss from being a jerk, other than if he is doing so because of illegal discriminatory reasons or retaliation for filing claims, such as workers compensation claims.

So, if he is not guilty of illegal discrimination or actions and he is the owner of the business, the only option an employee may be is to seek work for another employer.

However, as I said in my earlier message, if the stress manifests itself into an illness, mental or physical, your coworker may be able to seek assistance from the state's workers compensation system.

Good luck and let us know if you have any other questions.

what kind of company do you work at? When there is family ......blood is thicker than water unfortunely. But if this person is verbally abusive on a daily basis it seems to me that it is a hostile work environment she may want to seek a labor law attorney. How come your friend doesnt talk with the owner?

Given that this question is from 2004, I suspect that the situation has been resolved by now. I doubt that the poster is still coming back looking for additional responses.

what kind of company do you work at? When there is family ......blood is thicker than water unfortunely. But if this person is verbally abusive on a daily basis it seems to me that it is a hostile work environment she may want to seek a labor law attorney. How come your friend doesnt talk with the owner?

As a possible learning point for me, can you (or someone else) please explain what you mean by a "hostile work environment" and how an attorney can possibly help here? I do not see any indication of a legally protected characteristic being impacted or singled out.

Granted, the person is not seeking any information (and would be beyond most recourse at this point anyway). I just want clarification of your reply.

http://www.fcc.gov/owd/understanding-harassment.html