Reference no: EM131930766

A male employee complains to his supervisor. The employee is gay.

He says another employee - who is straight - says things whenever the gay employee passes the straight employee's cubicle. The gay employee says the straight employee makes sexually suggestive remarks to him, like "Nice buns" or "Nice basket." of "I'd let you 'do' me, even if I am straight." The straight employee shows pictures of handsome men from his sports magazine to the gay employee and says, "I bet you wouldn't throw him out of bed for eating crackers!" or "I bet you'd like to see his baseballs!"

The gay employee finds this behavior offensive; he is in a long-term relationship and has no interest in the straight employee. He finds it offensive to have pictures of these handsome athletes shoved in his face along with suggestive comments. The gay employee demands that something be done or he will seek legal advice.

The supervisor shows up at your HR door. He wants answers for the following questions:

 1. "Can he really sue?" he says. Why or why not?

2. "Federal law doesn't protect against anti-gay harassment, does it? Why or why not?

3. Can't I tell him he has to live with this?" Why or why not?

You might "skim" this article for help; the 'twist' in this hypothetical is that the "straight" employee does not really have any sexual interest in the gay employee. It doesn't fit the usual situation (e.g., a male supervisor "hitting on" his female secretary, who fears for her job if she complains to anyone).