Harassment And Legal Action

by Annie

I have been working with this company for 7 years. 3 years ago, I was relocated to a foreign country on a 3 years contract. I'm hard working and extensively experienced in my area of work. I was reporting into a manager who also relocated from another country.

In the beginning of my tenure this manager was very mean with me and after 2 or 3 months, he became friendly. However, his behavior made me feel very uncomfortable at work. He used to speak a lot about sex, women, his expectation about girls and all that stuff that made me feel embarrassed. I was the only woman in his team.

After a few more months, he told me that he had been noticing that I was undergoing some stress and depression. He asked me to be honest with him and without being shy - to tell him about my stress and he would help me. I was shocked and confused and told him that I was not stressed and depressed. I also told him that he shouldn't speak to me that way if he does not have anything to substantiate his perception.

Since then he was upset with me and started being mean with me again. He managed to get his manager, yet another manager and two of the HR managers into his gang and all of them together gave me such tough time that I honestly felt that ending my life would be easier than undergoing the harassment. They did all that they could do to terminate my employment. All of the company policies including my employment contract were violated to make up reasons for firing me from my job. It was extremely tough for me to defend for myself.

When I collected enough evidences of harassment and retaliation, I started legal procedure. By this time people at very high levels interfered and moved me out of that project and into another project in the same city. I tried to forget my past horrible experiences as I thought that was my only recourse. I continued to do a good job in the new project also and worked harder to make up for the years that I lost to workplace harassment. My hard work and goodwill were recognized by my current managers also.

However, 6 months after I moved to the new project, the main abuser of the previous project also came to work in the same office. He moved himself out of the other project and is attempting to find a position in my current project. And also he unnecessarily comes around the place where I sit and starts some silly conversation with people who sit around me and talks aloud and distracts me.

I'm much disturbed because of this man's behavior. After all the retaliation that I suffered in the previous project, I do not know how to handle him and whom to report him to. I do not want to tell my current managers about the troubles that I had gone through because I feel that even if I tell them, they will only side with the abuser because I see that this person is close to all of my managers. I cannot understand his intentions.

I have been searching for another job since 2 years but have not even had an interview in the past 2 years. I'm hopeless about finding a new job in this recession period. Can anyone suggest how to deal with this man and get him out of my office? Can I take legal action for the harassment that I had undergone 8 months ago? What other recourse do I have to be at peace once again?

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Info On Dealing With Workplace Bullying:
What Every Target of Workplace Bullying Needs to Know