Employer Liability for Customer Harassment of its Employees

• Posted by Geoffrey G. Gussis on August 3rd, 2005


• Filed in Employment Law

A new Ninth Circuit case (yes, yes, it’s the Ninth Circuit again) will make you wonder why you are always worrying about your employees harassing other employees.  As an article by Foley & Lardner points out, you may have to start worrying about your customers harassing your employees:

"The Ninth Circuit recently clarified that an employer can be liable under Title VII for harassment of employees by customers based upon race and national origin. The original basis for liability for employee harassment by customers was 29 C.F.R. � 1604.11(e), which provides that an employer may be responsible for sexual harassment of employees by nonemployees in the workplace, if the employer knew or should have known of the conduct and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action. In analyzing liability, courts consider the "extent of the employer’s control and any other legal responsibility which the employer may have with respect to the conduct of such non-employees."

Link: Foley & Lardner - Employer Liability for Customer Harassment of its Employees from Mondaq (free registration required).