If you are a smaller company, dealing with a sexual harassment case can be a serious burden and major disruption to your business. An employer who receives a complaint from an employee regarding such harassment should begin an investigation right away, even if the employee hasn’t yet mentioned plans to hire a sexual harassment attorney. The person who has been accused of harassment should never have any control over the investigation, either direct or indirect. The investigator should take the time to interview the accuser, the accused harasser, and any other employees who might have information relevant to the investigation. The employer should also ensure that any harassment isn’t allowed to continue. If this means that the parties need to be separated, the burden of transfer should never fall on the employee making the complaint. That could result in employment litigation with charges of illegal retaliation, even if the transfer wasn’t intended as a punishment.
