Pennsylvania Sexual Harassment Law Blog

As we have noted before, the restaurant industry can be a tough place to work when it comes to being subjected to inappropriate and unwanted behavior.

Several female employees of a restaurant claim that their male co-workers subjected them to unwanted sexual harassment, including inappropriate touching. Now the restaurant has agreed to pay a settlement of $25,000 as a result of a lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Three employees working for a Christian school are suing the superintendent and the private school, accusing the man of discrimination and sexual harassment. They also claim they were retaliated against and top staff at the school did nothing about it.

The lawsuit was filed by two women, the school's former director of human resources and the former assistant to the dean of students, as well as a man who served as a director of finance. They all claim that after the superintendent was hired, he made callous and sexually suggestive remarks and made numerous employees uncomfortable with his behavior.

A veterinarian working for Metro Animal Services filed a lawsuit against the city and the department's director, alleging she was sexually harassed on the job while her complaints went ignored.

The woman filed the sexual harassment lawsuit in state court, although one is apparently pending in a federal court as well. The woman claims the director of the department sexually harassed her repeatedly, including by touching her inappropriately and sending her sexually suggestive phone messages.

Women working as police officers in Pennsylvania and around the country sometimes face obstacles in what many consider to be a male-dominated field. A woman in another state is suing her police department for harassment and retaliation, alleging she was subjected to inappropriate behavior by her supervisor.

The woman, an officer in the canine unit, says her supervising sergeant circulated an embarrassing flier in an email that mocked her body. According to the woman's lawsuit, the flier appeared on department letterhead and contained phrases like, "Subject wanted for having the baddest body."

The Chick-Fil-A restaurant chain is apparently known for promoting family values. It has a reputation for being religious and closes its restaurants on Sundays. However, four women working at one of the restaurants say their supervisor certainly didn't exhibit responsible behavior. In fact, they say, they were harassed for years. They filed a lawsuit against their supervisor and the owner of the restaurant.

The sexual harassment allegedly occurred at a restaurant in Chula Vista over a two-year period. In the lawsuit, one woman says her manager took her inside a refrigerator, where he kissed her and touched her in a sexual manner. She says the behavior got worse and worse over time.

A woman who worked at the Lexus of Lehigh Valley car dealership has sued the car dealer, along with her supervisor. The woman claims her supervisor sexually harassed her repeatedly over a period of nine months.

The woman claims she was subjected to unwelcome comments and sexual overtures. The supervisor allegedly made comments about her breasts, emailed her lewd pictures, asked for naked photos of her and told her to wear sexier clothing.

A woman who served as a school district superintendent for nearly 13 years has settled a lawsuit against the school committee and the mayor. She claims the mayor sexually harassed her and created a hostile work environment, while the committee did nothing about it.

The woman began working as the superintendent in 1997. She contended that the mayor, who heads the school committee, created hostile work environment, including by subjecting her to humiliating sexual advances, according to MassLive.com.

Being a firefighter is a very tough job. It can involve extreme danger and stress. It should not involve, however, stress brought on by co-workers who subject others to sexual harassment. But that's what one volunteer firefighter says happened to her, and she's speaking up about it.

The woman, who worked both as a firefighter and emergency medical technician at the Laurel Lake Fire Company, says one co-worker subjected her to pervasive sexual harassment from late 2006 to early 2008, including inappropriate touching. She's since sued him, the Commercial Township Board of Fire Commissioners and the former fire chief.