Kansas Steakhouse to Pay $55K Over Pregnancy Discrimination Suit

A.V.I. Sea Bar & Chophouse restaurant, a Wichita, Kansas steakhouse with an attached catering service known as Corporate Caterers of Wichita, has agreed to pay $55,000 to a former employee and furnish other relief to settle an employment discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced.

According to the EEOC, hostess Macee Hoffman was provided a stool she used between serving customers to help alleviate foot and back pain due to her pregnancy. Afterward, managers took the stool away and demanded she bring in a doctor’s note. After providing a note, she was then fired.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Right Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on pregnancy. The EEOC filed its lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas (Equal Employment Opportunity Com­mission v. A.V.I. Sea Bar & Chophouse LLC d/b/a A.V.I. Sea Bar and Chophouse and Corporate Caterers of Wichita, Civil Action No. 2:21-cv-2428), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. Hoffman, who was seven months pregnant at the time of her termination, later filed a charge of discrimination with the Kansas Human Rights Commission and the EEOC.

The three-year consent decree prohibits A.V.I. Sea Bar and Corporate Caterers of Wichita from violating Title VII in the future, ensures employees are provided copies of the company’s pregnancy discrimination and anti-retaliation policy, requires recurring training for all employees on pregnancy discrimination as well as the company’s anti-harassment and anti-retaliation policies, and requires pregnancy discrimination and anti-retaliation training for all owners and managers.

The company will also regularly report to the EEOC regarding pregnancy discrimination complaints they receive, how they handle any complaints of pregnancy discrimination, accommodations requested by a pregnant employee, and adverse employment actions taken against a pregnant employee.

Source: EEOC

Topics Lawsuits Kansas