A hostile work environment is primarily a legal term used to describe a workplace situation where an employee cannot reasonably perform his work, due to certain behaviors by management or co-workers that are deemed hostile. Hostility in this form is not only a boss being rude, yelling, or annoying. It is very specific, especially in the legal setting when one is suing an employer for either wrongful termination or for creating an environment that causes severe stress to the employee.

There’s just a handful of ways in which you can define hostile work environment. Any act of sexual harassment on the part of bosses or co-workers can be viewed as hostile. Any act or remarks that are overtly discriminatory regarding age, race, gender, sexual orientation, or disability are also considered to create a hostile work environment.

The other way a hostile work environment may be defined is when a boss or manager begins to engage in a manner designed to make you quit in retaliation for your actions. Suppose you report safety violations at work, get injured at work, attempt to join a union, complain to upper level management about a problem at work, or act as a whistleblower in any respect. Then, the company’s response is to do all manner of things to make you quit, like writing you up for work rules you didn’t break, reducing your hours, scheduling you for hours that are in total conflict with what you can do, or reducing your salary. The company’s reaction can be viewed as creating a hostile work environment, one that makes it impossible to work and is an attempt to make you quit so that the employer does not have to pay unemployment benefits.

Lastly, overt hostility that threatens you physically are hostile work environments. If you really feel that you are at physical risk because of the behavior of another employee, specifically through violent behavior or threats of a violent nature, the employee’s manner is not only hostile but also potentially criminal.

When people find themselves in a hostile work environment, they may not know how to act or what to do. Actions should be determined by the degree of hostility. In the last example, if you truly feel a threat to your physical well being, it may serve you best to leave work and report the matter directly to the police. Such documentation can then serve you if you plan to sue the company or claim unemployment benefits.

In the first case, when discriminatory behavior is evidenced, or another employee acts in ways verging on sexual harassment, most experts in this field suggest that you act immediately. If someone tells a racist joke, let the person know that it’s inappropriate; if someone says anything of a sexual nature to you, ask him or her to stop. When the behavior continues, inform management, first with a documented letter, and second with a sit-down conversation.

Most companies have policies in place to deal with this type of behavior. When management fails to act appropriately, you can sue the company. Success in this type of lawsuit largely depends on not only how management failed to help but how you acted. If you respond with hostility in a hostile work environment, chances are your suit will be unsuccessful. Studies show that in court cases, your behavior is scrutinized just as carefully as management’s behavior.

When an employer is trying to make you quit by creating a hostile work environment, if you can hold onto your job, do so. It’s then important to make complaints about this employer either to upper level management or to government agencies that help people with discrimination or poor treatment in the workforce. These agencies can vary from city to city and from state to state. A good place to start is the federal US Department of Labor, which can direct you to these resources within your particular area. You may also consider working with attorneys that specialize in suing companies for these issues. You should first check with free sources, since suing a company can be expensive, and should you lose, you may be responsible for lawyer’s fees and court costs.