Pharmacy Chain Sued For Sexual Harassment, Constructive Discharge

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a civil rights lawsuit against Farmacias Carimas, a retail pharmacy chain in Puerto Rico. The EEOC alleges that a manager subjected a female employee to a sexually hostile work environment which ultimately forced the employee to resign (constructive discharge). According to the lawsuit, the nephew of the company’s owner attacked a female employee before closing the store at night and subjected her to unwanted sexual contact. The nephew forced the employee onto the floor, forcibly grabbed and kissed her, and rubbed his genitals against her. The employee was unaware of any process for complaining about the harassment and was forced to resign.

This conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination because of sex, including sexual harassment and constructive discharge.

Understanding the allegations 

The way the EEOC describes the allegations, this was practically an attempted rape. Generally speaking, to prove a hostile work environment, you must show a pattern of conduct that violates federal law. One instance of an employee making unwanted sexual advances isn’t enough to prove a hostile work environment. However, in certain cases, one violation is enough. But the allegations must be extremely egregious as they were in this case.

Ultimately, an employer is responsible for the conduct of their employees. In other words, they are vicariously liable when an employee breaks federal law. The EEOC will force the company to pay the employee back wages and compensatory damages for the manager’s nephew’s conduct. They will then force the company to enter into a consent decree which requires them to take proactive measures to prevent this type of conduct from happening again. The EEOC is extremely aggressive when it comes to enforcing consent decrees. A monitor will be assigned to watch over the company until the consent decree ends. Often, the consent decree lasts from 3 to 5 years.

Understanding sexual harassment lawsuits 

As stated earlier, a typical sexual harassment unfolds differently than this one did. An employee must show a pattern of abuse or intimidating conduct. They must also have taken the matter up with human resources or reported the conduct to a supervisor. In cases where the supervisor or HR acts on behalf of the employee and intercede to stop the abuse, the company is generally not liable to the employee for damages and the EEOC has no basis to form a claim. This is because the matter was handled properly. However, some instances of sexual harassment are so egregious and shocking to the conscience that the employee does not need to prove a pattern of abuse. They only need to prove that one heinous incident occurred. That is the case here.

Talk to a Columbus, OH Employment Discrimination Lawyer Today 

Kohl & Cook Law Firm, LLC represents the interests of employees subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace. Call our Columbus employment lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin investigating your situation immediately.

Source:

jdsupra.com/legalnews/eeoc-sues-farmacias-carimas-for-sexual-5449880/