Sexual Harassment Complaints Spike in All Workplaces Following Hollywood Scandals

America, including Hollywood and all workplaces, are going through a purge of sorts with all the sexual harassment and abuse complaints that have forced powerful man, celebrities, politicians, CEOs and supervisors to step down. Hundreds of women have come forward to accuse powerful Hollywood figures of sexual misconduct in recent weeks, and the Hollywood-purge impact has rippled through all industries in America.

The BBC alone has revealed that 25 alleged sexual harassment complaints from its staffers were under investigation since the country’s attention was finally focused on the long-running issue of sexual abuse, harassment, rape and sexual misconduct.

Last week, a Los Angeles County employee revealed that the number of sexual harassment complains filed by the county’s workers has skyrocketed after sexual misconduct investigations gripped some of Hollywood’s most prominent figures such as Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey, as well as politicians such as Roy Moore and Al Franken.

In what has become a non-stop campaign to empower victims of sexual abuse and sexual harassment to come forward and speak out, the public shaming and investigations into those claims have prompted women in all workplaces across the country to file complaints about inappropriate behavior and sexual advances from their co-workers and employers.

Sexual harassment complaints are booming in all industries

As revealed by a Los Angeles County employee, the biggest local government entities in the country were considering to set up a hotline for workers to report sexual harassment, as the number of sexual misconduct complaints has skyrocketed in recent weeks.

Fact: Los Angeles County employs roughly 110,000 people with an annual budget of about $30 billion. Since July of 2017, an unprecedented more than 3,000 complaints of sexual harassment, abuse, age discrimination, inappropriate behavior and other workplace-related problems have been filed with the county’s human resources department.

Practically all other industries, including restaurant business, tech, and service industry, have seen a boom in the number of sexual harassment claims from employees.

Sadly, not all HR departments within companies are willing to launch an unbiased investigation into sexual abuse and sexual harassment complaints in the workplace, and victims have to fear retaliation from employers as a result. If you work for an employer who has five or more employees, you have a right to make a human rights complaint with the company’s HR department. If there’s no HR department, you should go straight to a Los Angeles sexual harassment attorney, as intentionally ignoring an employee’s complaints or refusing to investigate and disciplinary measures against perpetrators of sexual harassment constitute unlawful conduct.

Shocking sexual harassment and abuse statistics in the US

Under the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Human Rights Code, an employer is required to ensure a sexual harassment-free work environment.

If he/she fails to do so, you may be entitled to pursue a sexual harassment claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) when there is no HR department within the company or the department has failed to address your complaint properly.

A new poll by ABC News and Washington Post – conducted in the wake of Hollywood’s recent sexual misconduct scandals – showed that 33 million U.S. women have been sexually harassed, while 14 million have been sexually abused in the workplace. The shocking statistics become even more disturbing given that a whopping 95% of the polled women said male perpetrators of such abuse usually go unpunished.

Here at Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers, we have witnessed hundreds of sexual harassment victims come to us and ask for help since the Hollywood sex scandals started pouring in.

If you’re a victim of sexual misconduct, consult our Los Angeles sexual harassment attorney to know your best course of action against predators in the workplace – whether it’s your employer or co-workers. We respect your right to confidentiality.

Call our offices at 310-527-6994 or fill out this contact form for a free case evaluation.