A hostile work environment may arise from a variety of sexually offensive conduct. Examples of sexually offensive conduct include sexually offensive language in the workplace, indecent gestures, crude language, unwanted sexual advances, unwanted flirtation, physical touching, staring or ogling, lewd, suggestive or obscene remarks, discussing sexual activities, commenting on physical attributes, sexually offensive jokes, displaying sexually suggestive pictures, electronic communications containing sexually explicit images or language (emails, text messages, instant messaging, etc.), or pornography in the workplace.
The sexually offensive conduct must be: (1) unwelcome, (2) based on the employee’s protected status, (3) subjectively offensive to the employee, and (4) objectively severe and pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would find hostile or abusive.
Whether the conduct is sufficiently pervasive depends on the particular facts and circumstances of each situation. Factors include: (1) the frequency of the conduct; (2) the severity of the conduct; (3) whether the conduct was physically threatening or humiliating; (4) whether the conduct unreasonably interfered with the employee’s work performance; (5) the effect on the employee’s psychological well-being; and (6) whether the harasser was a supervisor or manager.