EEOC Files Lawsuit Against Fred Meyer Stores Alleging Sexual Harassment

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleges that Fred Meyer Stores, Inc.—a subsidiary of the national supermarket chain Kroger—violated federal law when it allowed a male employee to sexually harass multiple female employees over a period of several years despite repeated complaints about his behavior.

According to the lawsuit, since at least 2017, a male employee repeatedly subjected his female coworkers to sexual harassment. This included wolf-whistling, leering, and making degrading sexual comments about their bodies and appearance. He was further accused of groping one female co-worker in the workplace. Female employees alleged that he followed them to their cars after their shifts were over, and attempted to follow one female employee in his car as she left the company’s parking lot.

Several female employees complained about the harassment to their managers and to human resources. The company eventually issued warnings to the male employee but permitted him to continue harassing his female coworkers for years until it finally terminated him in 2021.

This conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sexual harassment in the workplace and requires employers to investigate complaints of sexual harassment and take steps to prevent such harassment.

Hostile work environments and sexual harassment 

One male employee managed to create a hostile work environment all by himself. In this case, female employees raised several complaints about the male employee who was sexually harassing them. While the company did issue warnings to the employees, it did not go far enough to protect its female employees from the repeated abuse. The company should have disciplined the employee more severely or terminated his employment earlier to protect its staff from his conduct. It failed to do so and in the process, several employees were subjected to creepy conduct, unwanted advances, and intimidating stalker behavior.

If an employee has complained about a co-worker’s offensive or harassing behavior, the employer must investigate the matter and take immediate action. Employers should create a complaint or grievance process for their employees to report such conduct. They should also require employees to undergo anti-harassment training for the entire staff. If there is one problem employee, then that employee should be on alert that their continued employment is contingent upon utilizing their anti-harassment training.

In this case, the company took a soft-handed approach to dealing with the employee and now, they’re being sued by the EEOC. Not a good look. They also subjected countless other female employees to sexual harassment because they failed to remedy the situation when it first became a problem.

Talk to an Atlanta, GA Sexual Harassment Attorney Today 

The Forsythe Law Firm, LLC files sexual harassment lawsuits on behalf of employees who have endured harassment because their employers failed to take immediate action against their harasser. Call our Atlanta employment lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin investigating your case right away.

Source:

eeoc.gov/newsroom/eeoc-sues-fred-meyer-stores-inc-sexual-harassment