If you live in California and work at a larger company, you may need to undergo harassment training in compliance with new law AB1825.  In case you don’t have time to attend this training, I thought I’d offer some of the highlights.

According to the law, harassment takes two primary forms.  The first is called hostile work environment.  This occurs when many of the objects in the office that you depend on refuse to cooperate.  For example, your Internet Explorer shuts down citing the need to “unexpectedly quit.” Or the fax machine may not work.  Or your chair might squeak when you spin around on it.  All of these situations contribute to a hostile work environment.

If you’re faced with a hostile work environment, it’s important to remember that many companies have a “no tolerance” harassment policy and therefore it’s up to you to immediately report the incidents in question.  To do this, you should report the malfunctioning items directly to your Information Technology department.  They will look up, laugh at you, and go back to playing Quake.

The other kind of harassment is called quid pro quo.  This is where someone walks around the office speaking in Latin all the time, which doesn’t take long to become very annoying.  I once knew someone who always said Quod Erat Demonstradum, and not even just when making a point.  You’d say “Hey Biff, how you doing” and he’d say “Quod erat demonstradum” and then you’d have to throw a stapler at him.

There are also many subtler forms of harassment in the workplace.  One that I have been personally subjected to is receiving off-color emails.  It’s important to realize that just because you can change the font in an email doesn’t mean you should.  Isn’t black text on white background good enough anymore?  I’ve received emails from our manufacturing division that had alternating pink and green text--all set against “My Little Pony” wallpaper.

If you’re faced with quid pro quo or off-color email harassment, remember your company’s no tolerance policy.  Report the incidents directly to human resources--who will look up, laugh at you, and go back to playing Quake.