Managers Cannot Ignore Sexual Harassment that They Observe

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently settled a lawsuit against a company involved in raspberry farming in which the EEOC had alleged that employees were subjected to regular sexual harassment.  The EEOC's lawsuit claimed that both male and female employees endured a sexually charged hostile work environment that included a supervisor making repeated inappropriate sexual comments and unwanted touching.  Indeed, the lawsuit further alleged that these comments and inappropriate touching sometimes occurred in front of other managers and supervisors, who did nothing to stop the hostile work environment and even retaliated and discouraged employees from making additional complaints.  Such behavior is a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, which prohibits sex discrimination, sexual harassment, and retaliation for complaints of discrimination or sexual harassment.  See EEOC v. Tres Hijas Berry Farms, LLC, Case No. 2:22-cv-01919-MWF-Ex (C.D. Cal.).