Source: https://sanfordheisler.com/the-eeoc-metoo-moment/
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 02:57:53+00:00

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The EEOC first convened its Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace in 2015 and 2016. The Task Force issued a report and several recommendations aimed at employers and the EEOC itself.
The Task Force’s 2016 report foreshadowed many of the issues that would later become central to the #MeToo conversation. The Task Force chose to define harassment more broadly than the legal definition, noting that harassment includes behavior that “is detrimental to an employee’s work performance, professional advancement, and/or mental health,” and the Task Force report acknowledges the prevalence of “intersectional” harassment that touches on multiple parts of a person’s identity. The Task Force reported that harassment generally went unreported to management or, if it was reported, most complainants experienced retaliation. The Task Force also warned of the danger of high-level leaders ignoring or tolerating harassment within the workplace.
Two years later, the EEOC and Task Force found itself facing a very different environment around workplace harassment. The #MeToo movement brought harassment to the forefront and started a national conversation—outside of the context of the EEOC’s enforcement activities.
EEOC v. Sierra Creative Systems Inc., No. 2:18-cv-05185 (C.D. Cal.) (Filed June 12, 2018).
EEOC v. Total Maintenance Solutions, Inc., No. 1:18-cv-00413 (S.D. Ohio) (Filed June 13, 2018).
EEOC v. Tapioca Express, Inc., No. 3:18-cv-01217 (S.D. Cal.) (Filed June 11, 2018).
EEOC v. Real Time Staffing Services, Inc., No. 1:18-cv-00541 (D. N. Mex.) (Filed June 13, 2018).
EEOC v. New Prime, Inc., No. 6:18-cv-03177 (W.D. Mo.) (Filed June 13, 2018).
EEOC v. Master Marine, Inc., No. 1:18-cv-00269 (S.D. Ala.) (Filed June 13, 2018).
The lawsuits involve employers of various sizes and span across numerous industries including staffing agencies, restaurants, and transportation. The lawsuits also include incidents of intersectional harassment including both race and sexual harassment.
The EEOC’s reconvening of the Task Force and aggressive litigation strategy around sexual harassment signals the agency’s awareness of the significance of the #MeToo movement and its willingness to use high-profile litigation to advance the goal of eradicating harassment in the workplace. While the Agency says it has not seen a significant increase in the number of complaints since the advent of the #MeToo movement, its highly publicized pursuit of harassment cases may encourage other harassment victims to utilize the Agency’s complaint process.

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