Wrongful termination for sexual harassment
My husband was the construction superintendent at a subdivision. He supervised a crew of 3 construction assistants. A young lady was recently hired to handle customer service. She was not getting along well with the other crew members. She frequently wore low-riding pants and tops that allowed her midriff to be exposed. When she bent over, her underwear (thongs) were exposed for others to view. His crew complained to Human Resources. She frequently initiated conversations about her personal sex life and he tried to discourage her. He complained to our Vice President. The VP directed my husband to tell her to have a discussion about appropriate dress. He did not have an employee handbook with guidelines on appropriate dress, but did the best that he could to address a delicate topic. She complained at a company meeting. Now, he has been terminated for sexual harassment. This is an employee who's probationary period ends on Dec. 1. He has worked for this company for several years with no known complaints about his behavior. He has had to discourage real estate saleswomen from their advances as well. He was not allowed to see a written complaint of the exact charges. Who was being harassed? Was this an unfair use of the harassment laws to terminate my husband?
1 answer | asked Nov 27, 2005 09:51 AM [EST] | applies to Arizona
Answers (1)
Although it is not an easy case to make, your husband may have a claim of sex discrimination. The law at issue, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, does not specifically mention sexual harassment. It prohibits "discrimination on account of sex." Court decisions have interpreted this to extend to sexual harassment in the workplace. When an employee complains about sexual harassment, an employer has a duty to conduct a fair and complete investigation and take appropriate action to prevent sexual harassment. It is important to keep in mind that the law prohibits discrimination by the employer. In the woman's case, your husband is the "employer." For this reason, it is not enough to compare the way she was treated with the way he was. However, the decision to terminate his employment was the "employer" acting with respect to your husband as an employee. If he can show that the company simply took the word of the woman who complained without fully investigating, or if he can show that the company would not have fired a woman manager accused of sexual harassment, he can show that he has been discriminated against "on account of sex."
Without any information about the woman's specific complaint or the result of the investigation, it is difficult to evaluate the company's actions. I would suggest that your husband file a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission if he believes that the company has not handled the matter in a gender-neutral way.
posted by Francis Fanning | Nov 28, 2005 11:45 AM [EST]
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