Re: Sexual Harrassment Question

Possibly. I would need more details. Please feel free to contact me.

Randal Ford

Re: Sexual Harrassment Question

On the one hand I have little doubt that you were terminated for failing to submit to the supervisor's sexual demands. That is indeed a violation of the laws against sexual discrimination.

However, from the bare facts given, it sounds extraordinarily difficult to prove.

The first question I would have to ask, respectfully, is whether anything happened between your wife and the supervisor. This will be a defense - they will say your wife welcomed the sexual comments and your wife welcomed the sexual requests. If she did, even if she did not actually have sex with him, then you probably have a simple failed relationship issue - they fired your wife because of the failed relationship and not because of her sex. Many courts have held that a failed relationship is a valid reason to fire someone as it is not discrimination based on sex.

However, if in fact your wife was merely joking around with the supervisor and never indicated a desire for a sexual relationship (she might like dirty jokes on occasion) and he took her jokes to indicate that she was willing to have sex with him and then he made some sexual demand on your wife which she refused then there's an important difference that might get you somewhere. But you would still need to prove that the reason you were fired was false or was otherwise wrong. That can be difficult but there are ways to set them up properly.

I would file for unemployment first and see what their response is. You have 179 days to file a charge of discrimination with EEOC but I would do that only after you file with unemployment as you can often get different responses and use that against them later.

Send me an email if you have further information: sderamus@bellsouth.net