Arizona residents may be interested to learn that Microsoft is currently being sued for allegedly discriminating against women and denying them raises and promotions. In response to the lawsuit, which was filed in October of 2015, Microsoft recently published an email that it had sent to all of its employees. According to the email, the company fielded 83 complaints of sexual harassment during 2017 out of 65,000 workers.
Microsoft says that almost half of the complaints that it received were found to have been at least partly supported. Of the complaints that were found to be valid, half resulted in Microsoft’s termination of the harassers.
Microsoft responded because of a story that suggested a lack of response to sexual harassment allegations. Out of 118 complaints that were filed against Microsoft between 2010 and 2016, the report said Microsoft found only one to be supported. Microsoft says that the earlier report was based on numbers provided by plaintiffs in court documents and that the numbers were from an inaccurate reading of an incomplete data set.
Workplace harassment that is based on a worker’s protected characteristics is prohibited under federal and state anti-discrimination laws. People who have been the victims of workplace sexual harassment might want to consult with experienced employment law attorneys. The lawyers may analyze what happened and explain if the incidents constitute sexual harassment claims. If an attorney agrees to accept a case, they may help a client to gather the necessary evidence to file the corresponding complaints with the appropriate federal or state agencies.