If you’ve faced sexual comments, slurs, or unwanted advances at work, you have legal rights. Our New York sexual harassment lawyer helps employees hold employers accountable and restore a respectful, professional workplace.
Words can wound, and they can violate the law.
Verbal sexual harassment occurs when unwelcome words, comments, jokes, or questions of a sexual nature create a hostile or offensive work environment. Despite lacking physical contact, verbal harassment can be just as damaging to victims’ well-being and career prospects.
At Megan Thomas Law, we represent employees throughout New York who have experienced verbal sexual harassment in the workplace. Our firm helps clients hold employers accountable and secure the compensation they deserve for this harmful misconduct.
Verbal sexual harassment encompasses a wide range of spoken or written communications that are sexual in nature and unwelcome by the recipient. Under New York law, verbal harassment may include:
A key element in all harassment cases is that the behavior is unwelcome. Even if the speaker claims “it was just a joke” or didn’t mean any harm, what matters is how the conduct affects the recipient and the workplace environment.
New York offers some of the strongest protections against verbal sexual harassment in the country:
New York State Human Rights Law prohibits sexual harassment in all workplaces regardless of size. The 2019 amendments to this law significantly strengthened protections by:
New York City Human Rights Law provides additional protections for employees working within the five boroughs, with an even lower threshold for liability. In NYC, verbal harassment is illegal when it rises above what a reasonable person would consider a “petty slight” or “trivial inconvenience.”
Federal Protections under Title VII also prohibit verbal sexual harassment, though they generally apply only to employers with 15 or more employees and require the conduct to be “severe or pervasive.”
Under these laws, employers can be held liable for verbal harassment committed by supervisors, coworkers, and even non-employees like clients or vendors if the employer knew or should have known about the harassment and failed to take appropriate action.
Verbal sexual harassment can cause significant harm to victims, despite the absence of physical contact:
Courts recognize these harms and award damages accordingly. Unlike physical harassment, which may occur in private, verbal harassment often happens in front of witnesses, which can add feelings of public humiliation but may also make such cases easier to prove.
To establish a successful verbal sexual harassment claim in New York, you generally need to show:
Evidence might include emails, text messages, voicemails, witness statements, contemporaneous notes, complaints to HR, performance reviews, and medical records documenting emotional distress.
If you’re experiencing verbal sexual harassment at work, taking these steps can help protect your rights:
Taking these steps promptly can strengthen your position and create a record that will support your claim if litigation becomes necessary.
If you’ve experienced verbal sexual harassment in New York, you may be entitled to significant remedies, including:
Under New York State law, there is no cap on compensatory or punitive damages in sexual harassment cases, potentially allowing for significant recovery even in cases involving only verbal harassment.
Verbal sexual harassment can be particularly insidious because victims are often told to “lighten up” or “take a joke.” This dismissive attitude can lead to self-doubt and silence, allowing the harassment to continue and worsen.
At Megan Thomas Law, we validate our clients’ experiences and help them find their voice against workplace harassment. We know that “just words” can cause real harm, and we’re committed to holding employers accountable for allowing verbal sexual harassment to occur.
If you’ve experienced verbal sexual harassment in your New York workplace, contact Megan Thomas Law today for a confidential consultation. We’ll help you assess your options and develop a strategy tailored to your specific situation.
Words matter—and so does justice for those harmed by them.
*The information provided in this post is for general informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice. Viewing this post, commenting, or engaging with it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Yes. Verbal sexual harassment is explicitly recognized under New York and federal law. Words alone can create a hostile work environment and cause significant harm to victims. The law doesn’t require physical contact for sexual harassment to be actionable.
The harasser’s intent or perception is not the determining factor. What matters is whether the conduct was unwelcome and how it would affect a reasonable person in your position. Even “jokes” can constitute harassment if they create a hostile or offensive environment for the recipient.
Yes. Sexual harassment laws protect all employees regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation. Same-sex harassment is prohibited just as opposite-sex harassment is. The key question is whether the conduct was unwelcome and based on sex, not the genders of the people involved.
Verbal harassment that occurs via work email, phone calls, text messages, video conferences, or social media can still constitute workplace harassment, even if it happens outside normal work hours or off company property. If there’s a connection to your employment, it may still be covered under anti-harassment laws.
While written evidence is helpful, it’s not always necessary. Witness testimony, contemporaneous notes you made after incidents, patterns of behavior, and evidence of your complaints to management can all help establish your claim. An experienced employment attorney can help you identify and gather all available evidence to support your case.
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