Upscale Dining Chain Charged with Subjecting Males to Sexually Hostile Workplace

Source: CCH Online; U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

A leading upscale restaurant chain violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1991 by subjecting a class of male employees to a sexually hostile work environment at its Chandler, Arizona store, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) claims in a lawsuit announced by the agency on July 10, 2008.

The restaurant permitted a class of male employees to be repeated sexually harassed by groups of other male employees, the EEOC alleges in its lawsuit. The abuse included repeated sexual assaults by groups of male employees, who would grab another man and take turns simulating sex with the victim. The conduct also included bumping into victims from behind in a sexual manner and/or and grabbing their genitals on multiple occasions, the EEOC said. Company failed to address the harassment even after the male employees complained to management, according to the complaint.

The federal agency's lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages for the victims who filed charges with the EEOC and for the other men affected, as well as appropriate injunctive relief to prevent any sex-discriminatory practices.

"Sexual harassment against men is just as egregious as against women," said Mary Jo O'Neill, regional attorney for the EEOC's Phoenix district office. "All employees, both men and women, have a right to work in a harassment-free workplace."

"Approximately 16 percent of all of our sexual harassment charges involve male victims -- a figure which has steadily increased over the past 15 years," added EEOC District Director Chester Bailey. "The EEOC will continue to enforce the statutes prohibiting this behavior."

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