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Sexual Harassment by Supervisor Makes Employer Strictly Liable - Illinois Supreme Court

The Illinois Supreme Court on April 16, 2009 issued a ruling that an employer is strictly liable for damages resulting from sexual harassment by its supervisory employee on a subordinate employee. This holding which obtains under the Illinois Human Rights Act, reaffirms the law that Illinois employers whose supervisory employees engage in sexual harassment of subordinate employees are automatically liable for damages resulting from the harassment.

In reaching this conclusion, the Court rejected the employer’s contention that it would end up with liability for harassment actions committed by low-level supervisors. So long as the employee is a supervisory employee over the sexual harassment victim’s chain of command, the employer will be liable regardless of any remedial actions taken or employer’s prior knowledge of the alleged harassing conduct. Under the holding also, the employer is also liable whether or not the employee-victim complained about the sexually harassing conduct.

The Illinois Supreme Court ruling which establishes the law for Illinois employers differs from federal law which is governed by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended. Under the Federal law, employers may avoid liability for supervisor harassment by claiming a defense that it had a reporting policy which the employee-victim unreasonably failed to follow to bring the harassment to the attention of the employer. 

pdf [Read The Illinois Supreme Court Holding On Sexual Harassment Liability....]

 

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