Opinion ID: 76110
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: immediate and appropriate corrective action

Text: 27 If an employer has actual or constructive notice of harassment but takes immediate and appropriate corrective action, the employer is not liable for the harassment. See Miller, 277 F.3d at 1280; Fleming v. Boeing Co., 120 F.3d 242, 246 n. 4 (11th Cir.1997). Although the district court concluded that Blue Circle took immediate and appropriate corrective action in response to each incident that Watson reported, we conclude, after a thorough review of the record, that there is evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that Blue Circle failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action. 3 28 The Alewine junkyard incident is illustrative of the factual disputes that exist regarding Blue Circle's response to alleged harassment. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to Watson, Watson initially reported the events at the Alewine junkyard to a batch worker and a substitute supervisor because her regular supervisor, Taras, was out on vacation. Watson also delivered a written summary of these incidents to Taras's direct supervisor, Roach. 29 After receiving Watson's written report, Roach met separately with Ransom and Watson to discuss the situation. Roach testified that during his meeting with Ransom, he asked Ransom about propositioning Watson with money and touching her buttocks. Ransom, on the other hand, testified that Roach merely asked him for his side of the story and then reprimanded him for horseplaying, but Ransom's testimony does not indicate that Roach questioned him about the accusations of propositioning and inappropriate touching. In fact, although the written report that Watson submitted to Roach specifically mentioned the inappropriate touching, Ransom testified: I recall asking [Roach] did [Watson] say that I touched her in any kind of inappropriate way, and his answer was no. (R.1-74 at 72.) Moreover, Roach's report summarizing his meeting with Ransom makes no reference to Ransom's alleged offer of money. 30 After listening to both versions of what transpired at the Alewine junkyard, Roach determined that Watson and Ransom merely were horseplaying with each other, and he instructed them not to engage in such conduct in the future. In addition, Roach asked both employees if they were willing to continue working with each other, to which both employees responded yes, and he instructed them to contact him or another supervisor if they had any problems with one another in the future. Other than this reprimand, neither Watson nor Ransom was disciplined. Ransom's testimony, when viewed in the light most favorable to Watson, suggests that Roach did not make the purpose of his meeting with Ransom clear and that Roach failed to instruct Ransom to refrain from sexually harassing Watson. According to Ransom, Roach simply informed him that he should refrain from horseplaying, teasing, and joking with Watson. On this record, a reasonable jury could conclude that Roach failed to adequately investigate and respond to the Alewine junkyard incident, arguably Watson's most egregious allegation of sexual harassment. 31 Moreover, after meeting with Watson and Ransom, Roach spoke with Marci Creath in Blue Circle's Human Resources department about the Alewine junkyard incident. When asked whether he reported the touching and propositioning incidents to Creath, however, Roach responded that he honestly [could not] recall the conversation, and that he would be guessing if he answered the question. (R.1-75 at 41-42.) Roach further testified that, upon Taras's return from vacation, he informed Taras about the incident. According to Roach, however, he could not recall whether he informed Taras about the allegations of inappropriate touching or propositioning. Roach also testified that he could not recall whether he provided Taras or Creath with any of the documentation that had been created regarding the incident. In light of this testimony, a reasonable jury could also find that Roach failed to inform anyone else at Blue Circle about Watson's most egregious allegation of harassment. Accordingly, on this record, we cannot say that there are no genuine issues of material fact as to whether Blue Circle took immediate and appropriate corrective action in response to Watson's allegations of sexual harassment. 32 There are factual disputes with respect to other incidents as well. For example, Watson complained to Taras about an incident that allegedly occurred at a construction site where Watson delivered concrete. Watson testified that she asked Taras not to send her back to the construction site because a worker there grabbed Watson's hand and told her that he wanted to eat her. (R.1-53 at 133-34.) According to Watson, Taras laughed at her request and continued to send her to the site. Taras testified that he could not remember whether he continued to send Watson to the site. Nevertheless, the district court concluded that, because the construction worker was absent from the site when Watson made subsequent deliveries, the Court feels that ... action was taken. (R.1-90 at 8-9.) While this might be a reasonable inference from the record, the court improperly drew it in favor of Blue Circle.