Suing for Workplace Assault in Ohio

What You Need to Know About Suing for Workplace Assault in Ohio

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation allows Ohio employees the freedom to report misconduct within the workplace. Here is everything you need to know about suing for workplace assault in Ohio.

What is the legal definition of an assault?

Ohio law defines an assault as both an attempt and an act of causing another harm or extremely reckless actions taken towards another individual. There must be a specific intent to harm an individual without the action necessary being taken toward this person. The legal aid at work discusses the difference between workplace assault and workplace battery, which may be helpful to distinguish when pursuing a lawsuit.

Does Ohio have any laws in place preventing workplace assault?

Besides assault itself being entirely against Ohio law, the legislation released amends to the law and added protections for healthcare workers. There was a period in Ohio where assaults in the hospitals were on the rise and 1 out of 4 nurses were assaulted at work. In 2012, the Ohio Workplace Violence law was passed and allowed for higher protections such as:

Increase in the fine from $1,000 to $5,000 when convicted of the assault
Increasing the offense to a felony for a previously convicted individual
Hospitals are instructed to place more signs up talking about assault

What is a hostile work environment in Ohio?

To pursue a lawsuit for workplace assault in Ohio, the concept of a hostile work environment must be confirmed. A hostile work environment is defined as a workplace where there are prejudices and violations concerning the following:

Race
Gender
Sexual orientation
Disability
Country of origin
Religion

These identities are protected from discrimination and workplace bias under Ohio law. It is important to note that personal issues between the employer and the employee, such as a grudge, do not count for a hostile work environment. The legitimacy of the claim stems from the identities listed above.

What are Examples of Behavior that Prove a Hostile Work Environment?

Examples of Discriminatory Behavior Include:
Inappropriate comments or jokes made about someone’s gender or religion
Inappropriate touching
Sexual comments made toward an employee
Threatening behavior towards an employee because of their race

Proving a hostile work environment helps establish the basis of the workplace assault lawsuit in the state of Ohio. Providing as much evidence as possible can help strengthen the claim and lead to a better outcome in the lawsuit. Examples of such evidence include:

Screenshots of text messages or emails with sexual comments
Voicemails with inappropriate comments

How to Establish the Lawsuit?

Next, the employee should seek to hire an attorney with expertise in workplace harassment. The attorney’s job will be to prove that the environment is hostile and the effects are damaging to the employee’s ability to work. In addition, the attorney must prove the severity of the attacks on the individual. Because Ohio requires that the hostile work environment be proven to move forward in lawsuits, it is important to share everything that can help with the attorney.

Other Options to Address Workplace Assault in Ohio:

If the place of employment is large, they may have a Human Resources (HR) department. An employee can report harassment claims and threats there as well. HR teams have measures in place to address the claim within the workplace.

Another option for the employee is to reach out to US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to file a workplace discrimination claim there.

If the employee is a part of a union, they can also bring up the claim with their union representatives for advice.

Contact Us

If you or a loved one would like to learn more about Suing for Workplace Assault in Ohio, get your free consultation with one of our Employment Attorneys in Ohio today!