Prof. Levinson comments on sexual harassment from labor law standpoint

In recent weeks, claims of sexual harassment in the workplace have made national and local headlines as more people come forward with stories of being harassed by their superiors.

As an expert in labor and employment law, Brandeis Law Professor Ariana Levinson has been called upon by media outlets this week to weigh in on the legal definition of sexual harassment.

"From a legal standpoint, (sexual harassment is) when you have a person engaging in unwelcome sexual remarks or sexual conduct that is severe or pervasive ... and it alters someone's conditions of work," Levinson said on the Nov. 14, 2017, episode of UofL Today with Mark Hebert.

She also discussed the ways that sexual harassment charges can escalate from civil to criminal.

"In addition to sexual harassment, which is prohibited by Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts and here in Kentucky by the Kentucky Civil Rights Act, there are the types of civil claims employees can bring, such as intentional infliction of emotional distress or assault. When you get to things like assault or rape, then you could also have criminal charges."

Levinson was also interviewed by Louisville's WHAS11 on Nov. 6, 2017.

"A lot of times, there is a misunderstanding that sexual harassment has something to do with sexual activity, but it really is, in many cases — not all — about power," she said on WHAS.