Gordon & Rees Partner Diane Krebs and Associate Jamie Haar authored an article, “From the Office to Cyberspace: Workplace Violence in the Twenty-First Century,” published in the January 2017 issue of DRI's magazine, For The Defense.
In their article, Krebs and Haar, both members of Gordon & Rees’s Employment Practice Group, offer key legal considerations for employers on how to navigate workplace violence and bullying in today’s social media-heavy world.
The article discusses the many forms of workplace violence and bullying, with a particular focus on workplace cyberbullying, as well as identifies legal implications and an employer’s potential liability. Specifically, the article examines how workplace violence can implicate the Occupational Safety and Health Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, worker’s compensation exclusivity, and potential negligence claims from third party victims. The article further explains the potential problems an employer might face when creating its workplace social media policy and investigatory procedures under the National Labor Relations Act and the Stored Communications Act. Finally, the article offers suggestions for employers and employees to reduce workplace violence in an era where technology and social media is changing on a day-to-day basis.
Diane Krebs has more than 20 years' experience litigating civil rights and labor and employment matters and providing comprehensive counseling and advice to corporate owners and human resource personnel on daily issues and personnel decisions that arise in the workplace. She also prepares myriad human resource-related documents and conducts sensitivity and other employee training. Ms. Krebs can be reached at dkrebs@gordonrees.com.
Jamie Haar has extensive litigation experience in the areas of employment discrimination, sexual harassment, and wage and hour law. Ms. Haar can be reached at jhaar@gordonrees.com.
To read the full article, click here.