Sex harassment: 2 companies that screwed up big-time
These two companies aren’t exactly role models when it comes to handling sex harassment complaints.
An inappropriate use of streaming
In the first case, an office furniture and office supply company in Minnesota will pay $11,000 in emotional-distress damages to a former employee to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit.
According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) lawsuit, an operations manager at the company used a security camera system to stream footage of a female former employee’s breasts and body onto his office computer.
When the employee learned of the surveillance and told another manager and the company’s owner, nothing was done.
The female employee later quit and went to the EEOC, which filed suit on her behalf. The company opted to settle.
In addition to the monetary settlement, the company will:
- respond quickly when notified of sexual harassment complaints in the future, and
- train managers and ownership on employee rights under Title VII and the need to investigate sex harassment complaints.
The co-owner? Really?
The second case involves Ricardo’s Restaurant in Erie, PA, which will pay $20,000 to settle its own federal sexual harassment lawsuit.
The co-owner of Ricardo’s Restaurant allegedly made offensive comments to a number of female employees, and also touched female employees in a sexual manner.
The women complained, but the harassment didn’t stop. One of the women quit and went to the EEOC with her complaint.
The agency filed suit against Ricardo’s, which opted to settle. In addition to the $20,000 in monetary relief, the company will:
- create, enforce and disseminate a policy prohibiting harassment and retaliation
- retain a qualified third-party equal employment opportunity or HR consultant to provide training to all owners, shareholders, directors, managers, supervisors and employees on prohibiting harassment, retaliation and bias
- investigate any complaints of sexual or retaliatory harassment made against the co-owner
- report to the EEOC regarding compliance with the consent decree, and
- post a notice about the settlement.
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