Former civilian technician for the Air National Guard of the District of Columbia, Vicki Rouleau, won her sexual harassment battle in the courtroom after the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) found the District of Columbia National Guard liable for: (1) failure to discipline the senior co-worker in question and failure to investigate the sexual harassment allegations within a reasonable timeframe; (2) inadequate actions to provide separation between Ms. Rouleau and her harasser; and (3) retaliatory actions against Ms. Rouleau by reassigning her to clerical duty and stripping away her normal duties. Ms. Rouleau was awarded $231,425 by the EEOC, with the majority of this amount based on stress-related damages.
As reported by the Federal Daily News, starting in May of 2010, Vikki Rouleau made initial complaints to her supervisors that she was receiving unwanted advances from a senior co-worker at the Andrews Air Force Base. According to Ms. Rouleau, the National Guard took no corrective action in response to her allegations and she was forced to continue working in close quarters and in frequent contact with the senior co-worker for several more months. Ms. Rouleau finally resigned in November of that year, following months of continued sexual harassment with no assistance, investigation into her claims or action on the part of the Guard. It was 17 months from the time Ms. Rouleau notified the agency’s EEO director to the time the agency provided written notice to Ms. Rouleau of her Title VII rights.
Title VII prohibits any sexual or sexually-based harassment, such as creating a hostile work environment and unfounded employment action. Unresponsive action by management to resolve a situation clearly leads to a hostile work environment, such as in the case of Ms. Rouleau.
The EEOC found that the lengthy time-frame (17 months) between notification of these rights and initial complaints of sexual harassment was unacceptable. During this time, Ms. Rouleau’s Title VII rights had been denied. In addition, significant documentation and recollection of the events could have been jeopardized over the course of the 17 months. Almost three years later, in February of 2013, and to the relief of Ms. Rouleau, the EEOC handed down the order in this sexual harassment case.
If you’ve been the victim of sexual harassment or any discriminatory actions, contact our New York Harassment Lawyers today. We offer a free consultation.