sexual assault Tag Archives — Sexual Harassment Lawyer Blawg

Alleged harasser at General Dynamics NASSCO Norfolk Criminally Convicted of Sexual Battery

September 6, 2024 | by Friedman & Houlding LLP

A Virginia woman, “Ms. Smith” (a pseudonym), has filed an EEOC Charge alleging that General Dynamics NASSCO Norfolk failed to stop sexual harassment by her supervisor following her complaints, and went on to retaliate against her. Public court records now reflect that the supervisor has been criminally convicted of sexual battery of Ms. Smith, less than five months after she filed a police report.

In her EEOC Charge filed in June 2024, Ms. Smith alleges that from early in her employment as a firewatch at General Dynamics NASSCO Norfolk, her supervisor—the Firewatch Coordinator—subjected her to daily sexual harassment, which included sexual remarks, unwanted touching, and sexual come-ons. For example, the Coordinator asked to touch Ms. Smith’s body parts, asked her for sexual favors, and even kissed her face and grabbed her rear end and breasts. When she resisted his sexual advances, the Coordinator falsely told Ms. Smith’s higher-level supervisor that she had an “attitude.”

Ms. Smith’s Charge explains that she complained to her higher-level supervisor about the Coordinator’s harassment, but to no end: the harassment continued, including by the Coordinator falsely telling Ms. Smith’s coworker that Ms. Smith was willing to perform sexual favors at work. Ms. Smith was humiliated by his degrading remarks about her.

Encompass Health, a Major National Chain of Rehabilitation Hospitals, Faces Serious Charges of Sexual Harassment

August 17, 2023 | by Friedman & Houlding LLP

Encompass Health runs a chain of rehabilitation hospitals across the United States. It is enjoying record revenues. However, Charges of Discrimination and Retaliation filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) by nine current or former women employees of the Encompass Colorado Springs hospital threaten its success.

For revenue growth, Encompass depends on expansion and keeping its facilities at maximum capacity, which in turn depends on growing its referrals. Rehabilitation hospitals receive most of their referrals from discharge planners—social workers and case managers—at acute care hospitals or other health care facilities. Case Management and Social Work is a woman-dominated field. Encompass competes with other rehabilitation hospitals for referrals from these women. Encompass’s women employees rated it fifth among six major competitors according to a Comparably study done in 2022.

Northeastern State University must submit to discovery in Title VII and Title IX action alleging sexual harassment

May 27, 2022 | by Friedman & Houlding LLP

A federal judge in the Western District of Oklahoma has denied Northeastern State University’s motion to dismiss a former employee’s claims of sexual harassment and retaliation under both Title VII and Title IX, after a coworker allegedly put his hands down her pants.

Deanie Hensley, the plaintiff in the action, worked for NSU in Tahlequah, Oklahoma for approximately 13 years. She alleged in her First Amended Complaint that multiple supervisors and co-workers engaged in sexually inappropriate behavior over that time, including sharing sexual cartoons and remarking on women’s bodies, but Hensley’s complaints resulted in no changes. After her complaint about a particular supervisor resulted in retaliation including stripping Hensley of job duties, she decided to take a position with a contract company that provided the university’s mail services. The joint employment with NSU and this company allowed her to continue working at NSU and using her expertise and familiarity with the NSU campus and personnel. However, Hensley alleges that one of the coworkers who had a habit of making offensive remarks sought her out on the job, then: “reached across the counter and put his hands down her jeans, with the backs of his hands against her stomach. He reached down to her panty line. He then pulled her belt buckle and shook it, commenting on how she had been ‘losing weight.'”

Shaken and traumatized by the assault, Hensley alleges that she complained to NSU campus police. Following even more complaints that the harasser was following Ms. Hensley and approaching near her in violation of a protective order, Hensley alleges in her Complaint that Steven Turner, NSU’s President, threatened the contract company with the loss of its contract if it did not remove Ms. Hensley from the NSU campus. Ms. Hensley alleges the inevitable result of this threat would be that she would lose her job–and that in fact, she did lose her job as a consequence.