Houston-Area Manufacturer to Pay $35K to Settle Sex Harassment, Retaliation Suit

A plastics manufacturer in the Houston area has agreed to settle a sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit for $35,000.

Element Plastics Mfg. LLC, based in Sugar Land, Texas, has settled the suit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

In its lawsuit, the EEOC alleged that Element Plastics violated federal law by subjecting a female employee to a hostile work environment and then firing her in retaliation for complaining about the sexual harassment.

Specifically, the EEOC’s lawsuit (Civil Action No. 4:19-cv-02218) charged that the employee was subjected to sexually harassing comments, unwelcome touching, and other improper and sexually hostile conduct. The EEOC further charged that a few weeks after she complained about the harassment to her direct supervisor and a manager, she was terminated in retaliation for making the complaint.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed its suit (Civil Action No. 4:19-cv-02218) in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

The terms of the agreement were set forth in a consent decree signed and entered by U.S. District Judge David Hittner on Jan. 25. The settlement requires the company to pay $35,000 to compensate the discrimination victim and prohibits Element Plastics from engaging in similar discriminatory conduct in the future.

In addition, the company must develop and implement policies and procedures to address illegal discrimination, harassment and retaliation, including complaint procedures and guidelines for investigating complaints of discrimination.

Source: EEOC

Topics Lawsuits USA Manufacturing