Conduct Constituting Workplace Harassment (Part I): Mistreatment and Persecution

Workplace Mistreatment: Physical and Moral Violence

Under the legal and psychological magnifying glass, mistreatment is configured as the most aggressive manifestation of harassment.

It is not limited to physical aggression, which is easily identifiable and punishable, but encompasses moral violence aimed at injuring the integrity of the individual.

It includes acts such as insulting or insulting expressions about the person (not about his or her work), the repeated use of foul language to address a subordinate, or public comments that allude to the victim's intimate and sexual life.

It is essential to understand that mistreatment does not require physical contact; a shout in a boardroom or a blow on the table designed to terrorize are acts of violence that violate dignity and create an immediate hostile environment.

Persecution at Work: Inducing Resignation

Persecution is perhaps the most insidious modality, since its ultimate goal is not to "correct" the employee, but to expel him or her.

It is characterized by a repetition of arbitrary behaviors that seek to demotivate the employee to the point of breaking him/her.

Clear examples include the humiliating disqualification of his proposals in front of his colleagues, making fun of his physical appearance or way of dressing, and the unjustified modification of schedules or shifts with the sole purpose of altering his personal life.

The harasser pursues the victim with excessive surveillance, timing his or her trips to the restroom or inspecting tiny mistakes that other employees overlook, creating a siege of unbearable pressure.

Discrimination Unjustified Differential Treatment

Although sometimes treated as a separate chapter, discrimination is a conduct that constitutes harassment when it is used to segregate.

It consists of differential treatment on the basis of race, gender, age, family origin, religious creed or political preference.

In practice, this is seen when leaves, leaves of absence or contractual benefits are systematically denied to a specific employee while they are freely granted to his or her peers. It also includes exclusion from training or integration activities.

The key here is the lack of objective justification: if "John" is denied the training course because of his religion and not because of a lack of budget, we are dealing with discriminatory harassment behavior.

Summary

Labor mistreatment includes physical and moral violence, such as insulting expressions, use of foul language or public comments about intimate life that violate dignity.

Labor persecution seeks to induce resignation through repeated and arbitrary conduct, such as mockery of appearance, public technical disqualification and excessive surveillance of tasks.

Discrimination is defined as harassment when there is unjustified differential treatment based on race, gender or creed, denying benefits or excluding from training activities without objective reason.