Most professionals now recognize that they can hold employers accountable for sexual harassment. If a supervisor or coworker attempts to solicit someone inappropriately, touches them sexually or creates a hostile work environment, an employee understands that they have certain rights.

They can ask management to intervene and can hold the company accountable if the situation persists. However, not all sexual harassment comes from coworkers or supervisors. Sometimes, the people who treat a worker inappropriately are customers or clients.

The company should still protect them

The most important thing for workers to realize is that the source of sexual harassment is not what matters. What matters is that the conduct meets the legal standard of sexual harassment and that it involves workplace relationships. An employee should be able to report customer or client harassment to a supervisor and expect support from the company. Businesses should intervene for the protection of a worker experiencing harassment from a client or customer.

In some cases, transferring care of that patron to another worker, possibly of the opposite sex, could resolve the issue. Other times, management may need to ask someone to change their behavior or cease visiting the establishment. Occasionally, harassment can cross the line into assault if it involves unwanted touching and may warrant the involvement of law enforcement.

What happens when businesses don’t help?

Unfortunately, employers often act as though the customer is always right even when those customers violate the rights of employees. An organization that refuses to confront customers for sexual harassment or to help a worker avoid workplace misconduct may be liable for the impact of that harassment. When a business continues to expose a worker to sexual harassment or punishes them for reporting the issue, then the affected worker may have grounds to pursue a sexual harassment lawsuit against their employer.

Initiating a sexual harassment lawsuit can compensate someone for the harm caused by misconduct and can also push a company to change its practices. Those who recognize that they do not have to accept mistreatment from customers and clients may feel empowered about speaking up when they experience sexual harassment.