Orange County Employment Lawyer Blog

It is an unfortunate fact that more and more female employees are subjects of sexual harassment at their place of employment. Recently, our Orange County Law Firm has consulted with several employees who have been the subject of workplace harassment and discrimination. Recently, a school bus company agreed to pay $150,000 to settle allegations that a male supervisor at its Los Angeles, California facility sexually harassed at least four women, including bus drivers and a human resources assistant, as reported by the Beverly Hills Courier.

According to the U.S.Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, four female employees of First Student were sexually harassed, retaliated against or forced to quit. First Student builds itself as North America's leading school bus transportation services company. According to an EEOC lawsuit alleging civil rights violations, the supervisor made constant explicit remarks about the employees' body parts and the sexual acts he wanted to perform on them.

The harassment turned physical when the supervisor exposed himself, grabbed the breasts of a bus driver and rubbed his private parts against her body, according to the EEOC. The harasser cut another bus driver's hours upon refusal of his advances and promised extra hours to female employees who might submit, according to the EEOC, which reported that three of the victims felt forced to resign as a result of the ongoing harassment.

According to the EEOC, aside from the monetary relief, the parties entered into a consent decree, valid through 2012, which requires First Student to hire an outside employment consultant to revamp the company's policies, complaint procedures, investigations and training of its employees on sex discrimination, harassment and retaliation.

Continue reading "Los Angeles School Bus Company To Pay $150,000 To Settle A Los Angeles California Sexual Harassment Lawsuit" »

On a previous blog we stated that when it comes to sexual harassment women and minorities are unfortunately subjected to workplace harassment and discrimination far too often. Our Orange County Law Firm constantly receives calls from prospective clients regarding this issue. However, it is unfortunate that many sexual harassment cases go unreported because the employee is afraid of retaliation or wrongful termination

Recently, the Beverly Hills Courier reported that a female Sargent was awarded $211,000 by a Los Angeles Superior Court Jury. The jury determined that she endured about three years of sexual harassment by her one-time mentor. The plaintiff's lawyer argued that the harassment against his client ranged from asking her out on dates to uninvited physical contact, including two forced kisses. The defense attorneys said criminal and internal investigations conducted into her complaints exonerated her one-time mentor.

Her mentor was in charge of her orientation and began tormenting her according to her lawyers, who said she initially tried handling the problem without telling her superiors. She eventually complained and was transferred to the another department and given a position tantamount to a receptionist and normally held by interns in the training unit, her lawyers said. White is currently in another inferior position in which she proofreads documents and cannot earn overtime, her lawyers said.

If your or anyone you know is the subject of sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation contact our Orange County Law Firm for a free consultation.

Our Orange County Law Firm receives a number of calls involving illegal workplace harassment. In the state of California, it is unlawful to harass a person (an applicant or employee) because of that person's sex. Harassment can include sexual harassment or unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature.

Harassment does not have to be of a sexual nature, however, and can include offensive remarks about a person's sex. For example, it is illegal to harass a woman by making offensive comments about women in general.

Both the victim and the harasser can be either a woman or a man, and the victim and harasser can be the same sex. Unfortunately when it comes to sexual harassment women and minorities are unfortunately subjected to workplace harassment and discrimination far too often.

Recently, Hewlett-Packard's board forced its former CEO to resign amid allegations of sexual harassment and expense-account abuses. The case stems from allegations by an independent contractor that the CEO sexually harassed her and falsified expense reports to cover up a relationship, the Los Angeles Times reported.

In the wake of the company's handling of the sexual harassment complaint, four members of the Hewlett-Packard Company are going to step down. Among the incoming board members is Meg Whitman, the former CEO of Ebay and losing candidate in last fall's Californias governor's race.

The Times also reports that court documents filed by HP show the company is planning its own independent probe into Hurd's departure, stemming from a shareholder suit over Hurd's severance package. The ouster of the board members is largely the result of the perception of rash decision making -- The CEO was forced to resign despite HP's determination that he did not violate the company's sexual harassment policy.

If you need to speak to an attorney about an issue with discrimination, sexual harassment, unpaid wages contact our Orange County Law Firm for a confidential consultation to discuss your rights as an employee.