One of the first things people ask when they’re considering a sexual harassment claim is what they can actually recover. That’s not a cynical question. It’s a practical one, and it deserves a straight answer.
Missouri employees can pursue claims under both state and federal law. The Missouri Human Rights Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 are the two main legal frameworks at play here. The damages available to you depend on which law applies and what the facts of your case look like.
Economic Damages
These are the ones you can put a number on. If the harassment caused you to lose your job, miss a promotion, take a demotion, or feel like you had no choice but to walk away from a toxic environment, those financial losses don’t disappear just because the situation was uncomfortable to report.
Economic damages can include:
- Back pay for wages lost after an adverse employment action
- Front pay when going back to that job isn’t realistic
- Lost benefits, including health coverage, bonuses, and retirement contributions
- Out-of-pocket costs tied directly to the harassment or your resulting job loss
Non-Economic Damages
Not everything shows up in your bank account. Sexual harassment does real emotional damage, and Missouri courts take that seriously.
Anxiety. Depression. Loss of confidence. Damage to your professional reputation. These aren’t abstractions. They’re things people actually live with after a hostile work environment, and you’re allowed to seek compensation for them. Putting a dollar amount on emotional harm is never simple, but it’s not impossible either. What matters is building a solid record.
A Columbia sexual harassment lawyer can help you pull that together. Medical records, mental health treatment history, and testimony from people who witnessed how this affected you, all of it can support your non-economic damages claim in ways that actually move the needle.
Punitive Damages
Sometimes the employer’s conduct is bad enough that compensatory damages aren’t the end of the story. Courts can award punitive damages on top of everything else, and they serve a different purpose. They’re not about making you whole. They’re about punishing truly harmful behavior and making clear it won’t be tolerated.
Under Title VII, punitive damages are available when an employer acted with malice or reckless indifference toward your federally protected rights. According to the EEOC, combined compensatory and punitive damages are capped based on employer size, ranging from $50,000 for smaller companies up to $300,000 for employers with more than 500 employees. The Missouri Human Rights Act has its own separate framework and damage provisions that your attorney will evaluate alongside federal law.
Attorney’s Fees and Court Costs
Worth mentioning, because people often don’t know this: if you win your case, you may also be entitled to recover attorney’s fees and litigation costs. That’s significant. It means many employees can pursue a legitimate claim without fronting legal expenses on their own from day one.
What This Actually Means for You
Your case isn’t going to look exactly like anyone else’s. The damages available depend on how severe the conduct was, how your employer responded once they knew about it, and the full picture of what this cost you, financially and personally. There’s no shortcut to that analysis.
TGH Litigation handles employment discrimination and civil rights cases throughout Missouri. The team here looks at each case on its own terms, because the facts matter and so does the strategy behind the claim.
If you’re not sure where you stand or what your situation might be worth, talking to a Columbia sexual harassment lawyer is a reasonable place to start. Reach out to our team to go over what happened and what Missouri law may allow you to recover.