Employees in an open workspace are on their computers looking at their emails. Close up of Natasha is looking out of a large office window, thinking about the incident. Employees in an open workspace are working on their computers.

Case Study Four

Calls It Like She Sees It

Later that day occasional snickers and laughter filled the office space as Cody, and some of his friends, started emailing pictures of men in suits and bodybuilders with Natasha’s head attached. When Natasha found out what was going on she asked them to stop, but that didn’t help at all.

So she reported the incident to management.

Now none of them will talk to Natasha or return her emails. And the thing is, she can’t get her work done if they won’t communicate with her.

The conduct of the employees involved can be best classified as:

The correct answer is RETALIATION

After Natasha reported the incident to management, Cody and others stopped communicating with her entirely, making it very difficult for Natasha to do her job, which could be considered a form of retaliation. Retaliation of any kind, such as demotion, discharge, reassignments, or any other negative action against anyone who, in good faith, files a complaint or participates in an investigation is absolutely prohibited by law and policy. If you think a supervisor or coworker is retaliating against you or someone else for making a complaint or assisting with an investigation, it should be reported immediately. Now let's take a look at our next case study.