Seventh Circuit Questions Adequacy of Employer Efforts to Protect Teens from Sexual Harassment

In Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. V& J Foods, the EEOC appealed on behalf of a sixteen-year old female fast-food worker, who had been sexually harassed and then fired after her mother complained to the company.  The District Court granted summary judgment for the employer, holding, among other things, that there was no factual dispute as to whether the employer had taken reasonable steps to prevent and correct sexual harassment. 

At oral argument on September 12, 2007, however, a panel of Judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (Posner, Williams, and Flaum), questioned whether the employer had given clear notice of the ways for employees to complain about harassment.   In particular, the Judges asked whether the adequacy of an employer’s policies should be judged in light of the age of the employees.

The questioning included this colorful exchange:

          (21:30 to 22:30 minute)

Employer’s Attorney:          My position is, a 16-year-old should continue to call and certainly call the corporate office and ask for human resources and say, as far as we’re concerned, come down in, we’ll talk about this issue we’ll solve the problem.

Williams, J:                         Even though you don’t have in your manual, human resources is who deals with this kind of issue?

Employer’s Attorney:          In terms of...human resources does deal with this issue.

Williams, J:                        I know, but it’s not in your manual.

Employer’s Attorney:          I’d have to read it over more specifically. I thought it said-

Posner, J:                           You don’t know what’s in your manual? You don’t sound very well prepared if you don’t know what’s in your manual. That’s what the case is about right?

Employer’s Attorney:          That is in part you’re right. But in terms of dealing with this issue I think that-

Posner, J:                            ...you don’t even know what’s in it, why should she know what’s in it?

         

   To hear the argument in its entirety, go to:

http://www.ca7.uscourts.gov/fdocs/docs.fwx?caseno=07-1009&submit=showdkt

David Wachtel