Verdict for EEOC Against National Auto Parts Retailer Affirmed

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

PHOENIX – A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco has affirmed a $65,000 jury verdict against a Memphis-based national auto parts retail giant, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced.

The EEOC had sued the company for creating a sexually hostile work environment for Stacy Wing, an employee at a store in Mesa, Ariz. Wing reported the sexual harassment to the company’s management, the EEOC said, but the company failed to take immediate and appropriate action to stop it. The evidence at the resulting jury trial showed that Wing was subjected to egregious sexual harassment by the company’s store manager, including repeatedly forcing Wing’s face down to his genitals and making crude sexual remarks to her. At least one such incident was captured and recorded on the store’s video camera system but the company claimed it lost the video prior to trial, along with all records of Wing’s reports and the “investigation” the company asserted it conducted.

Sexual harassment violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

On June 10, 2009, an eight-person federal jury in Phoenix returned a unanimous verdict in favor of the EEOC, and awarded Wing $65,000 in compensatory and punitive damages. On August 21, 2009, the company appealed the trial court’s denial of the company’s motion that sought to overturn the jury’s verdict.

On March 15, 2011, the Ninth Circuit rejected the company’s appeal, holding the jury could reasonably have determined the company management failed to exercise reasonable care to correct promptly the store manager’s obscene and harassing behavior once Wing brought it to their attention, and that a reasonable juror could question the efficacy and good faith of the company’s investigation. The court noted evidence was introduced that the company’s investigator, a regional human resources manager, did not interview certain employees, did not report the investigation to the company per company policy, and did not advise Wing of the outcome of the investigation. The court stated the company’s inability to produce any documentation corroborating it had even conducted an investigation – documents the company’s own policies required it create and maintain – and the loss of the video evidence cast doubt as to the company’s actions.

Upon learning of the Ninth Circuit’s ruling, Wing said, “I can finally close this chapter of my life and move forward; you will never know how grateful I am for all of [the EEOC’s] help.”

EEOC Senior Trial Attorney D. Andrew Winston, one of the EEOC lawyers who tried the case to the jury, said, “Stacy Wing demonstrated tremendous courage coming forward and reporting what happened to her, and her actions and the actions of other women like her improve conditions in the workplace for all women.”

The EEOC appellate attorney who handled the case on appeal, Paula Bruner, added, “The Court’s decision reaffirms it is not enough for a Title VII-covered employer to have an anti-discrimination policy. The employer must enforce the policy and take preventive or corrective action to effectively fulfill its statutory obligation to maintain a workplace free of discrimination and harassment.”

According to the company’s web site, “(The company) is the No. 1 auto parts retailer in America, with “4,000 stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia … and 84 stores in Mexico.”

The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at  www.eeoc.gov.

Sexual harassment lawsuits in the workplace have been on the rise over the past few years. Make sure your company is protected from potential liability by utilizing anti-harassment training annually. To learn more, contact Berkshire Associates at 800.882.8904 or email bai@berkshireassociates.com