O assédio moral como causa de rescisão do contrato de trabalho

Abstract

This study was undertaken in view of the lack of legal regulation about the concept and application of moral harassment in labor relations, a fact that causes insecurity to employees as well as to employers. We noticed that moral harassment is a matter of current concern which is being frequently discussed in academic circles and dealt with in legal decisions. However, very few judges acknowledge this fact as a reason for terminating a labor agreement, whether it is termination "for cause" of a harassing employee in a command position, or indirect termination of the harassed employee's labor agreement: they render judgements that recognize the moral harassment but only award an indemnization for moral damages. In our opinion, whenever faced with labor suits based on moral harassment, Labor Judges should not limit themselves to awarding indemnizations for moral damages resulting from such action, but rather have an obligation to apply the labor legislation dealing with labor agreement termination, based on the principles set forth in the Federal Constitution, aimed at preserving the labor atmosphere as well as human dignity, the principles that govern agreements, their social role, and also complying with the Consumer Protection Code and the Brazilian Civil Code of 2002. This is the object of the present paper.