• 09
  • December
    2011

Male supervisors for an orchid growing company in California have been accused of subjecting their female Hispanic workers to sexual harassment on the job. While those men deny the allegations, they have still agreed to pay $200,000 in order to settle a lawsuit initiated by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of the workers.

The suit claimed that the male supervisors would make many of the women targets of unwanted touching to their breasts and buttocks along with bombarding them with unrelenting sexually-charged jokes. The supervisors also exhibited signs of racial discrimination by lacing their remarks with discriminatory talk towards Hispanics.

Twice, individuals attempted to put a stop to their actions, but they were both fired as a result, the suit claims. One male greenhouse worker came to a woman's aid. A woman also lodged a written complaint. Both workers promptly fired.

The woman went to the California Rural Legal Assistance office to seek help. An attorney at the office said the lawsuit was centered on helping the women maintain their dignity and grant them the right to work in an environment that was free of any type of harassment.

The $200,000 settlement payment made by the company is to be divided up among all the individuals who made claims in the lawsuit. The company must also install an equal employment opportunity coordinator to its staff to ensure the work place remains free of harassment, discrimination and other deviant behavior.

The previous owner of the company, who allegedly allowed similar behavior to take place, paid $40,000 into the settlement. Those owners also denied any wrong-doing.

Source: Ventura County Star, "Harassment case in Oxnard 'was about dignity,' attorney says," Stephanie Hoops, Nov. 30, 2011