Dan Schwartz, now of Pullman & Comley, reports that a hearing was held this week on Senate Bill 60, which would give victims of workplace bullying the right to bring suit against the perpetrator or an employer who “has knowledge that any person has subjected an employee of such employer to an abusive work environment and has failed to exercise reasonable care to prevent and promptly correct the abusive conduct.” The bill defines “abusive conduct” as:

conduct or a single act of an employer or employee in the workplace that is performed with malice and is unrelated to an employer's legitimate business that a reasonable person would find hostile or offensive considering the severity, nature and frequency of the conduct or the severity and egregiousness of the single act. Abusive conduct includes, but is not limited to, (A) repeated infliction of verbal abuse such as the use of derogatory remarks, insults and epithets; (B) verbal or physical conduct that a reasonable person would find threatening, intimidating or humiliating; or (C) sabotaging or undermining a person's work performance.

Mr. Schwartz  also links to some recent articles discussing workplace bullying legislation. He can be counted on to keep us posted on developments in Connecticut.

Additional Reading:

• States Consider Legislation to Cut Office Bullies Down to Size