A lawsuit has been filed against a nursing and rehabilitation facility by the EEOC for ignoring employees’ complaints of sexual harassment; and, instead of punishing the harasser, the facility retaliated by terminating the women making the complaints. Sexual harassment is considered a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Compliance Perspective – Sexual Harassment:
The Compliance and Ethics Officer with the Human Resource Director and the Administrator will review the facility’s policies and procedures regarding the company’s adherence to state and federal laws prohibiting sexual harassment and retaliation for reporting such incidents. All employees will receive education and training regarding the facility’s no tolerance policy of sexual harassment. Training will include the process for making a sexual harassment complaint to an employee’s supervisor or through the facility’s anonymous Hotline. The Compliance and Ethics Officer together with the Human Resource Director will survey employees anonymously to determine if there are any incidents of unreported sexual harassment. The survey will also provide an opportunity for employees to report any type of intimidation or harassment regarding the reporting of potential non-compliance issues. The surveys will be reviewed, and any instances of harassment reported will be addressed.
An Arkansas nursing and rehabilitation facility is accused in a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of violating federal law by failing to address sexual harassment complaints made by female employees. The facility subsequently terminated those employees for complaining about the harassment.
The company is reported to have received reports of the harassment as early as May 2016, and as recently as May 2018. The EEOC alleges that it was common knowledge among the facility’s employees that if one complained about sexual harassment, instead of punishing the harasser, the company punished those who complained by firing them. For fear of losing their jobs, several employees decided not to report the harassment. The other women who did report the harassment were told by the company officials that action would be taken. However, the company failed to take any action against the harasser and fired the women making the complaints. The EEOC alleges in its complaint that the facility allowed the employee’s harassment to go unchecked and constitutes a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The suit seeks monetary relief in the form of back pay, compensatory and punitive damages, compensation for lost benefits, and an injunction against future discrimination.
