Walmart Sued by EEOC for Sexual Harassment, Retaliation Firing
A Walmart Supercenter manager in West Virginia is accused of sexually harassing female employees and firing one in retaliation for reporting the harassment, according to lawsuit filed against America’s biggest retailer by the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
The lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, details harassment by the Walmart manager, including unwelcome and offensive sexual touching, requests for sexual acts in exchange for money or favorable treatment at work, requests that female workers expose intimate body areas, and making crude sexual innuendos.
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The EEOC’s lawsuit said that Walmart Stores East, LP, received multiple complaints about the manager and failed to take action to stop the harassment. One of the store’s employees reported the manger to Walmart Stores East, LP, and she was fired in retaliation after, according to the EEOC.
Workplace harassment such as that detailed in the suit violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits harassment and discrimination because of sex. Employees are also protected under Title VII against being fired as a result of reporting or opposing such behavior.
“Employers must act promptly and forcefully to protect workers from sexual harassment,” said Debra Lawrence, regional attorney, EEOC Philadelphia District office. “All too often, employers instead choose to callously disregard that legal duty and punish workers for reporting harassment. The EEOC is committed to vindicating the rights of workers subjected to such offensive harassment and retaliation.”
In a statement, the retailer it is “seriously” concerned about the harassment claims.
“We don’t tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind and want all our associates to feel respected,” it said. “We take this seriously and the claims raised to our Ethics Department were investigated and were not substantiated. We will respond as appropriate once we are served with the Complaint.”
This lawsuit is the latest in a string of complaints filed against Walmart by the EEOC. Earlier this week, the agency filed suit on behalf of an employee at a Walmart location in Farmington, New York, alleging the store violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by ending longstanding accommodations that allowed the disabled employee to perform her job.
Though previous managers had accommodated her disabilities for years prior, the employee was not allowed to “perform her tasks via a consistent routine” and was then fired due to performance issues caused by their failure to accommodate her disabilities.
The EEOC has filed four additional lawsuits against Walmart this year related to American Disabilities Act violations. One alleged a skills assessment screened out disabled workers, two accused the retailer of unlawfully firing employees who missed work due to their disabilities and another said Walmart failed to accommodate two deaf workers in Olathe, Kansas.
Editor’s note: This article was updated on Sept. 23, 2023 with Walmart’s statement.
