Sexual Harassment Charges: Companies Will Pay $245K

Sexual harassment and retaliation allegations filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) have produced a settlement that calls for the payment of $245,000 and the provision of other relief.

The EEOC said in a lawsuit that two Asian food companies – Pacific Culinary and CB Foods – subjected employees at a California location to ongoing physical and verbal harassment. The suit was filed on behalf of a class of female and male food production workers.

According to the suit, the harassment came from a high place. In fact, it alleged that the company’s chief operating officer sexually harassed both male and female employees.

EEOC suit alleges sexual harassment

What specific sexually harassing behavior allegedly took place?

According to the agency, there was harassment that included:

• Groping and touching
• Sexual advances and comments, and
• Improper questions about employees’ sexual preferences and activities.

The agency also said several complaints about the alleged harassment were made, but that the companies did not take prompt and effective action to stop it.

The EEOC’s allegations of wrongful behavior did not stop there. It added charges that the employers retaliated against employees who report alleged harassment by subjecting them to further harassment, disciplining them, and terminating their employment.

The suit alleged violations of Title VII, which bans sexual harassment in the workplace.

The agency said it filed the suit only after efforts to resolve the matter via its voluntary conciliation process proved to be unsuccessful.

Monetary payment settles sexual harassment suit

To resolve the lawsuit, the employers agreed to pay $245,000. In addition, they agreed to take the following steps:

• Review and revise policies and procedures that are related to Title VII
• Make sure all employees are trained on discrimination, harassment and retaliation
• Periodically conduct audits to ensure that employees including managers and supervisors are held accountable for discrimination, harassment and retaliation
• Institute a complaint procedure that includes an online complaint process and a toll-free hotline, and
• Maintain records relating to any future complaints that are filed.

“The EEOC brought this case to defend the rights of vulnerable workers to be free of sexual harassment, particularly where language barriers have been used to deter complaints,” said Anna Park, regional attorney for the agency’s district office in Los Angeles. “Employers must ensure that complaint mechanisms are accessible to all workers and take appropriate steps to address harassment towards vulnerable workers.”

Sexual harassment: A review

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which applies to employers with at least 15 employees, includes sexual harassment as part of its overall ban on sex discrimination.

The EEOC has explained that verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes unlawful sexual harassment when it:

• Negatively affects an individual’s employment
• Unreasonably interferes with work performance, or
• Produces an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.

Here are some other basic facts about sexual harassment, again courtesy of the EEOC:

• The victim can be a man or woman.
• The victim and harasser can be the same sex.
• The harasser can be a supervisor, co-worker, employer agent or non-employee.
• Victims may include someone who is not the direct target of the harassment but is nonetheless negatively affected by it.
• Harassment can be unlawful even if the victim is not economically harmed or discharged from employment.
• To be unlawful, the harasser’s conduct must be unwelcome.

Key steps for employers to take

Employers should take a few basic but crucial steps to help reduce the likelihood of unlawful sexual harassment in their workplaces. These include the following:

• Make it clear to employees that sexual harassment will not be tolerated. This is often done via employment handbook provisions.
• Take steps to provide regular training to employees relating to unlawful sexual harassment.
• Make sure to have an effective complaint process in place, and that employees know how to use it.
• If an employee alleges sexual harassment, investigate promptly and take any required remedial action.