Florida Woman Wins Employment Lawsuit over Sexual Harassment
In a recent court case, a Florida woman, identified only as Ms. Meyers, sued her former employer, Central Florida Investments (CFI), claiming that she was sexually harassed by the firm's CEO, David Siegel over a period of five years. During the time that she was allegedly being harassed by Mr. Siegel, he reportedly offered her boyfriend one million dollars in exchange for allowing Mr. Siegel to spend the night with Ms. Meyers.
Ms. Meyers further claimed that Mr. Siegel's harassment included inappropriate touching, whether they were alone together or if there were other employees present. When she complained to other executives, they did nothing to help her, and she was eventually fired in 2000. The jury in the case awarded Ms. Meyers one year's salary in compensatory damages ($102,223), and over five hundred thousand dollars in punitive damages against both Siegel and CFI. The decision was upheld as "reasonable" on appeal. Read more details of the case at Florida Employment Harassment Case "Out of a Bad Movie."
CFI executives' response to Ms. Meyers' allegations put their company at risk. So, what should have happened? Companies should establish a policy for handling complaints of sexual harassment and should ensure that the policy is enforced - from implementing a proper and immediate investigation through remedial action. The accused should be given sufficient detail about the complaint and provided an opportunity to respond. Confidentiality should be maintained to protect both the accuser and the accused from adverse workplace and personal consequences. Executives should ensure that any negative action toward the accuser is reviewed to ensure that it is not done (or could be perceived to be done) in retaliation for bringing the complaint. Employers should also consider whether the investigation should be handled by a qualified outside party to ensure fairness to the accused and the accuser as well as to provide evidence of the company's desire to handle claims of harassment in a fair and timely manner.
If you live in the Jacksonville, Florida or Orlando, Florida area and have been the subject of sexual harassment or are an executive with a company faced with a claim of sexual harassment, please contact our firm, Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A., for business legal counsel.
