Harassment at work

Harassment at work can have disastrous consequences on the physical and mental health of the employee, as well as on his professional career. Harassment, whether moral or sexual, is considered a crime.

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HOW TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN MORAL HARASSMENT AND SEXUAL HARASSMENT?

1) moral harassment

According to article L. 1152-1 of the Labor Code , moral harassment consists of repeated acts with the object or effect of degrading working conditions likely to infringe human rights and their dignity, '' alter their physical or mental health or compromise their professional future.

Two cumulative conditions must therefore be respected: they must be repeated acts (1) likely to harm the employee (2). More specifically, the deterioration of working conditions must be liable to undermine the rights and dignity of the employee, alter his physical or mental health, or compromise his professional future.

Note that acts of harassment should only be likely to harm the employee. It is therefore not necessary that the damage has already occurred.

2) sexual harassment

According to article L. 1153-1 of the Labor Code , sexual harassment is constituted “by repeated statements or behavior with sexual connotations which either violate the dignity of the person because of their degrading or humiliating nature, or create an intimidating, hostile or offensive situation against him ” .

Here again, the actions must be repeated and have harmful consequences on the employee, either by undermining his dignity or by creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive situation against him.

Article L. 1153-1 specifies, however, that “any form of serious pressure, even not repeated, exerted with the real or apparent aim of obtaining an act of a sexual nature” is assimilated to sexual harassment.

A single act can therefore constitute sexual harassment, in the case of serious pressure aimed at obtaining an act of a sexual nature.

This is the usefulness of the distinction between sexual harassment and bullying. While bullying requires repeated acts, sexual harassment can only be an isolated act .

HOW TO PROVE THE HARASSMENT?

According to article L. 1154-1 of the Labor Code , it is up to the employee to present precise and consistent facts allowing the existence of harassment to be assumed.

It is then up to the defendant to prove that the facts reported do not constitute harassment and that his decisions are justified by objective factors, unrelated to any harassment. The burden of proof is therefore shared between the employee and the defendant.

WHAT ARE THE PENALTIES?

The direct perpetrator of the harassment incurs various sanctions. It can be the employer, a superior, or even a colleague of the victim, regardless of his hierarchical position.

1) Disciplinary sanctions

Any employee having committed acts of harassment is liable to disciplinary sanctions taken by the employer, up to and including dismissal.

2) Criminal sanctions

According to article 222-33-2 of the Penal Code , moral harassment is punishable by 2 years' imprisonment and a fine of € 30,000.

The same goes for sexual harassment, punishable by article 222-33 of the Penal Code . In this case, the penalties can be increased to 3 years' imprisonment and a € 45,000 fine in the presence of aggravating circumstances, for example if the acts were committed by a person abusing his authority.

Remember that an act of sexual harassment can also constitute a sexual assault or even a rape. We refer you here to articles 222-22 to 222-33-1 of the Penal Code .

3) Civil sanctions

The perpetrator can be ordered to pay the victim damages. This sanction also concerns the employer, even if the latter is not the direct author of the facts.

In fact, the employer is personally responsible for acts of harassment in the company as part of his safety obligation, and can therefore be ordered to compensate the employee who is the victim of harassment.

The employer can only be exonerated from his responsibility by justifying having taken all the preventive measures required by law, and, once informed of the existence of facts likely to constitute moral harassment, the immediate measures for them. put an end to.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU ARE A VICTIM OF HARASSMENT?

If you are the victim of harassment in your workplace, there are several options available to you.

1) Notify your employer

The employer has the obligation to take all the necessary measures to put an end to the acts of harassment. You can thus denounce these acts to your employer while reminding him of his obligation of safety.

2) Alert the institutions representing the staff

You can notify the staff representatives as well as the economic and social committee (CSE) of your company, if it exists. The CSE has the right to alert the employer in the event of moral harassment.

You can also contact other actors such as the occupational physician or the labor inspector. The latter can be seized by the employees of acts of moral harassment. If he decides to conduct an investigation and finds an offense, he informs the Public Prosecutor.

3) initiate a mediation procedure

You can also ask your employer to initiate a mediation procedure. The mediator tries to reconcile the parties and submits written proposals to them in order to put an end to the harassment.

If conciliation fails, the mediator informs the parties of any penalties incurred and of the means available to the victim to assert his rights in court.

Please note, however, that the mediation procedure only concerns moral harassment.

4) Seize the industrial tribunal

You can apply to the industrial tribunal to obtain compensation for the damage suffered within 5 years of the last act of harassment. The proceedings will take place against your employer, even if he is not the direct author of the facts.

5) Go to criminal justice

Finally, you can file a complaint to bring the facts to criminal justice (see our information sheet on the complaint  as well as that devoted to the constitution of civil party ). Moral and sexual harassment being crimes, they are prescribed by six years from the day of the commission of the facts (the last act of harassment committed in this case).

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Note that it is quite possible to accumulate actions : so you can take the industrial tribunal against your employer and file a complaint to initiate criminal proceedings.

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Last updated: May 2021