Quid pro quo is a form of sexual harassment consisting of discriminatory actions by a supervisor or manager that require an employee to choose between submitting to sexual demands and forfeiting a benefit of employment or promotion.
If you believe that you have been subjected to quid pro quo harassment in your workplace, you should consult the skilled Austin sexual harassment lawyers at Austin Employment Lawyers, P. It may be possible to sue your employer for damages. Federal and Texas laws prohibiting quid pro quo harassment protect businesses with a minimum of 15 employees. Anyone can be a victim of quid pro quo harassment, including people in the LGBTQ community, and similarly, anyone in a position of power in a workplace can be a perpetrator of it.
Your employer can only be held liable for quid pro quo harassment if the person who perpetrated this type of harassment actually had supervisory authority over you or the capacity to influence employment decisions taken against you.
Typically, quid pro quo harassment involves the actions of someone with power to act for the company, such as supervisors, managers, and anyone else with authority over the terms and conditions of employment, such as directors or officers.
In Texas, the senior management and vice principals are considered the same as the employer for the purposes of liability. An agency relationship will be assumed, in which these high-level employees act for the company and can be held liable for the company if they sexually harass you. You will need to establish that you suffered unwelcome advances or requests for favors by someone in a position to control an aspect or term or condition of your employment, and submitting to the request was an express or implied condition of getting an employment benefit, or refusing led to a significant change in employment status, such as hiring, termination, failure to promote, benefits, or reassignment to a less favorable group or department.
