The Case of Blakey v. Continental Airlines, Inc.: Harassment in the Cyberspace

The case of Blakey v. Continental Airlines, Inc. 751 A.2d 538 (N.J. 2000) was one of the first cases that involved the problem of harassment in the cyberspace.

Issue: Hostile workplace environment and sexual harassment.

The case involved Tammy S. Blakey, the captain of Airbus A300, the aircraft of Continental Airlines. She was the first female captain of such aircraft. However, she experienced the problem of the hostile workplace environment and sexual harassment. However, the hostile workplace environment and sexual harassment involved not only the workplace in its conventional form, like the cabin of their aircraft, where Blakey found pornographic images, but also in the cyberspace. To put it more precisely, Blakey became vulnerable to threats and sexual harassment via the internal internet bulletin boards, where she found harassing messages addressing her. In such a situation, Blakey experienced uncomfortable workplace environment and filed the lawsuit against the company that failed to protect her from harassment in the workplace environment.

Rule: Title VII of Civil Rights Act of 1964 and New Jersey Law against Discrimination

Analysis: On analyzing the case of Tammy S. Blakey, it is worth mentioning the fact that her case was different from the conventional case of sexual harassment and hostile workplace environment. The harassment occurred not only physical in the real world but also in the virtual world and cyber space. Moreover, the definition of the workplace environment was also under a question because internet board bulletin boards did not relate to Continental Airlines proper. Instead, they were run by the third party. In such a situation, the question that begs is whether the virtual cyberspace created the hostile environment and whether the company or employer was accountable for harassment of employees in the cyberspace.

In such a way, the case involved two main issues. First, the court had to determine the presence of cases of sexual harassment and hostile workplace environment. Second, the court had to determine whether the cyberspace could be defined as the workplace environment. Cases of the hostile workplace and sexual harassment has been proved through numerous factual evidence and presence of evidence in the workplace environment, like pornographic images found by Blakey in the cabin of her aircraft, and in the cyberspace, like threatening messages in the internet bulletin boards. In such a way, the evidence of the hostile workplace environment and sexual harassment were sufficient.

However, the cyberspace did not match the traditional definition of the workplace environment because the cyberspace did not belong to the workplace environment physically. Moreover, the internet bulletin boards were run by the third party. Nevertheless, employees of Continental Airlines used the internet bulletin boards mainly. Threats were addressed to Blakey and the internet bulletin boards were used as the tool of harassment of Blakey by other employees of Continental Airlines. Therefore, the cyberspace was actually the space used by the company’s staff to communicate and share important messages, but, in case of Blakey, the cyberspace also became the tool of her offense and sexual harassment from the part of other employees of Continental Airlines.

Conclusion: The court ruled that Continental Airlines were accountable for cases of sexual harassment and creation of the hostile workplace environment in relation to Tammy S. Blakey. The court’s ruling was grounded on the fact that the use of the cyberspace involved employees of Continental Airlines and the company should keep control over employees in terms of respect of the privacy and human dignity of other employees, namely Blakey. This is why the case contributed to the inclusion of the cyberspace in the workplace environment and increased the employer accountability for the hostile workplace environment and sexual harassment of employees.

Works Cited:

Blakey v. Continental Airlines, Inc. 751 A.2d 538 (N.J. 2000).

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]
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