A California employee who alleged her coworker called her an anti-Black slur can bring a hostile work environment claim, the state’s top court ruled Monday, saying an isolated incident of harassment can draw a legal claim if it’s severe enough.
The fact that a San Francisco District Attorney’s Office coworker said the slur, rather than a supervisor, shouldn’t by itself preclude such a claim, because coworkers can still wield power over each other, California Supreme Court Justice Kelli M. Evans said in the unanimous opinion.
Instead, California courts should consider “the full context of the workplace,” including how closely .
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