Patient harassment: It is no laughing matter

Jaklyn Wrigley (jwrigley@fisherphillips.com) is Of Counsel with Fisher Phillips LLP in Gulfport, MS.

A recent Fifth Circuit Court opinion begins, “Claims of sexual harassment typically involve the behavior of fellow employees. But not always.” The opinion illustrates the dangers of failing to take an employee’s complaints of harassment by a patient seriously.[1] In its opinion, the Court reminds employers of Title VII’s mandate that they take reasonable steps to protect employees once they know that the employees are subject to abusive behavior. An employer’s failure to take action could allow an employee’s claim to proceed to trial.

The Fifth Circuit’s pronouncement in the Gardner case is not novel. In the midst of the #MeToo movement, it does serve as a timely reminder, however. It also underscores that healthcare employers—that chaperone an environment rife with challenges—are not above reproach. The duty to provide a safe workplace exists regardless of that workplace’s inherent and expected hazards.

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