Unfortunately, there are many cases of hostile work environments across the United States.
At least 35% of people experience workplace harassment. These situations are often deemed “hostile” when a pervasive amount of harassment is present.
A situation can turn into unlawful harassment when the conduct becomes pervasive enough to be intimidating or abusive.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a government organization that helps employees stand up to companies after enduring harassment and/or a hostile work environment.
The EEOC determines whether a situation is illegal by determining if the alleged events violate…
The Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)
Before I get into different cases of hostile work environments, it’s important to understand some key signs. After all, 34% of workers are unsure about what behaviors create a hostile environment.
Some signs of hostile work environments include…
Verbal or non-verbal anger or aggression
Verbal or non-verbal sexual harassment
Discrimination
Belittling or shaming publicly
Threatened with punishments
Offensive jokes or racial slurs
Unhealthy competition
Now that you have a brief understanding of what hostile work environments can look like, let’s look at 8 cases of hostile work environments brought to court in 2022.
Table of Contents
Amazon - July 2022
At least 24 employees at an Illinois, Amazon warehouse filed a complaint with the EEOC against their employer in July of 2022.
The complaint alleges that employees at the MDW2 Fulfillment Center, located outside of Chicago, endured…
Confederate imagery on coworkers’ clothing
Racist death threats on bathroom stalls
Corporate abuse
Retaliation
A racially-hostile work environment since 2021
Amazon terminated an employee at the beginning of July after voicing concerns about the death threats. Instead of addressing the situation, Amazon dismissed the threats and made no changes to the warehouse’s work environment.
A group of African American employees expects Amazon to address and resolve these issues promptly. They’re also seeking monetary damages for emotional duress caused by extremely stressful work environments.
Unfortunately, employees are hesitant to speak out against Amazon. They fear they will face further retaliation from the MDW2 Fulfillment Center’s management. Management told employees that if they speak out, they’ll face termination due to an agreement all employees signed when onboarding forcing them to remain silent.
This fear is a major cause of concern for the future of the lawsuit and the livelihood of those who speak out.
Amazon has yet to settle the lawsuit. The lawyers representing the victims, both current and former employees, will not back down and are fighting to make sure the courts hear their clients.
Rover's Place - July 2022
Rover’s Place is a dog kennel company located in suburban Chicago. One of their employees used to work at the kennel without incident until one of the owners learned about said employee’s past drug use.
Upon learning this information, the owner succumbed to their fears, myths, or stereotypes regarding the recovery process. As a result of this fear and lack of understanding, the owner confronted the employee in question about their history of addiction and treatment.
At the time of questioning, the employee wasn’t consuming any drugs. The disability hadn’t presented any issues in the workplace.
The EEOC filed a lawsuit against Rover’s Place in July 2022, alleging the company subjected the employee to a hostile work environment, illegally inquired into medical history, and forced the employee to quit over the situation.
These allegations violate the American Disabilities Act (ADA). As such, the EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
As a consequence of their actions, the settlement mandated that Rover’s Place pay $60,000 and furnish other relief as necessary.
Giertsen Restoration - June 2022
Giertsen Company of Wisconsin, often doing business as Giertsen Restoration, is a construction and commercial real estate renovation company.
The EEOC filed a lawsuit against the company alleging the company allowed a hostile work environment to take place in June of 2022.
According to the suit, African American employees endured a hostile work environment that included…
Racial slurs
Racial comments
Retaliation
The situation was so bad that managers who witnessed the racial harassment did nothing to stop it. They even participated in using racial slurs and comments.
Although several employees filed complaints about the situation, the company didn’t address the harassment. Instead, Giertsen assigned one of the employees who complained about more physically demanding work. They then fired said employee in further retaliation.
Such allegations violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The law prohibits discrimination in the workplace due to race. It also prohibits any form of retaliation against an employee for complaining about the discrimination.
The EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
The settlement of the suit involved a total of $140,000 in monetary relief for the victims of the harassment. Giertsen also needed to provide equitable relief for its employees, including training and appointing an equal employment opportunity officer. This individual will handle any future discrimination complaints at Giertsen.
RREMC, LCC - May 2022
RREMC, LLC, a Florida-based company, is the third-largest Denny's franchisee in the U.S. At its Brandon, Florida restaurant, a Mexican employee endured a hostile work environment in. The harassment focused on his national origin. The situation resulted in the employee’s termination.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of national origin. As a result of this blatant violation, the EEOC filed a lawsuit in the U.S District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division in May 2022.
The lawsuit resulted in a three-year consent decree approved by the federal court. RREMC LLC needed to pay the victim $45,000 in monetary relief.
The company also needed to…
Adopt and distribute a policy prohibiting discrimination on the basis of national origin
Provide specialized training about employee rights and complaint procedures to…
Human resources personnel
Managers
Employees
Provide reports of any complaints of national origin discrimination to the EEOC
Tell the EEOC any actions it took in response to future complaints
Community Loans of America, Inc. - March 2022
Community Loans of America Inc. and its subsidiary Carolina Title Loans, Inc. are in a world of trouble. Allegedly, the company subjected an employee, hereby referred to as Jenkins, to a racially hostile work environment. They also failed to accommodate Jenkins’s disability and subsequently fired her.
Here is what happened:
From August 2019 through September 2019, the branch manager of the Greenville, South Carolina location made severe and pervasive racial comments. The manager subjected Jenkins to racial harassment directed at Jenkins’s African American status.
More specifically, the branch manager made derogatory comments about African American customers in the presence of Jenkins. Such comments involved many slurs, including the n-word, and degrading comments towards the African American community such as “they never pay their bills.”
Jenkins reported the offensive comments directly to two different managers. Despite speaking up, the company did not take any action to stop the harassment. Jenkins then tried to report the hostile working conditions to the employer’s employee hotline but her phone calls were never returned.
To make matters worse, Carolina Title Loans, Inc. would not let Jenkins return to work after taking unpaid leave for a disability-related surgery. Allegedly, this is because of Jenkins’s need for crutches or a wheelchair post-surgery. The company told her that she could return to work when she did not have any restrictions and would remain unpaid during the absence.
This was the company’s way to force Jenkins to extend her unpaid leave and they eventually fired her.
Carolina Title Loans blatantly violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. As a result, the EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. The lawsuit seeks monetary relief for Jenkins, including compensatory and punitive damages. The lawsuit also seeks injunctive relief against the company to end ongoing racial or disability harassment and to take steps to prevent such unlawful conduct in the future.
As of July 2022, there has not been any settlement of the lawsuit.
Riverwalk Post-Acute - March 2022
Riverside Post-Acute is a skilled nursing facility located in Riverside, California. They provide short or long-term care for residents and patients. The EEOC charged the organization with violating federal law.
According to the lawsuit, the hostile work environment had gone on since at least 2018. Riverwalk Post-Acute allowed residents, employees, and a supervisor to racially harass African American coworkers. The harassment involved repeated and frequent offensive race-based remarks. There were also many slurs directed at staff.
The employer failed to respond to multiple complaints of harassment. Riverside Post-Acute told employees to tolerate the abusive remarks and endure the hostile work environment. The company retaliated against one employee after said employee complained of racial harassment.
Both the work environment and Riverwalk’s response violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The act prohibits discrimination on the basis of race and any form of retaliation against those who face discrimination.
The EEOC first attempted to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. When that failed, they filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
The lawsuit attempts to seek compensatory and punitive damages for several employees. The lawsuit also seeks injunctive relief intended to prevent and correct discrimination. As of August 2022, Riverside has not yet settled with the EEOC regarding the lawsuit. As such, there is no official settlement agreement.
Don's Specialty Meats - January 2022
In Scott and Carencro, Louisiana, Don’s Specialty Meats, Inc. operates as a food preparer and retailer. The company settled a lawsuit brought by the EEOC through a consent decree. The judge on the case approved the decree in mid-January, 2022.
Here is what happened…
A general manager at Don’s Specialty Meats routinely referred to an employee by racial slurs in his presence.
The manager used this verbal harassment in front of other managers and employees. When the company became aware of the situation, Don’s Specialty Meats decided to dismiss the victim of the hostile work environment for the rest of the day. The supervisor did not face any repercussions.
Due to the severity and intensity of the hostile work environment, the employee found the conditions so intolerable that he resigned.
The EEOC filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for Western Louisiana in 2021. They settled the lawsuit through a three-year consent decree. Under the settlement, Don’s Specialty Meats, Inc. will…
Pay the former employee $67,500 in back pay and damages
Conduct training
Revise Policies
Provide regular reports to the EEOC
Post a notice that affirms the company’s obligations under Title VII and states that employees can report violations to the EEOC.
Monro, Inc. - January 2022
In the midwest, there is a Car-X Tire and Auto store chain called Monro, Inc. In multiple store locations in the Chicago area, the company violated federal law by maintaining a hostile work environment riddled with sexual harassment.
According to the lawsuit, multiple male employees endured physical sexual abuse. They were also subjected to graphic sexual comments. At least one female employee dealt with various demeaning work assignments and verbal gender harassment.
All of these allegations would violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act since the law prohibits sexual harassment based on sex.
The EEOC first attempted to reach a pre-litigation settlement through a conciliation process. When this did not work, they filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The suit has not yet settled and it is not clear what kind of compensation or changes might occur.
Conclusion
As you can see from the cases above, hostile work environments can take many forms. If you find yourself in a situation that sounds like one of the cases above, there are some things you can do about that.
You should take note of situations that you think might be harassment or inappropriate workplace behavior. Even if something doesn’t seem like it is unlawful, it is still important to take note. You should always report these instances to management or law enforcement. If you don’t, the harassers will continue to harass.
Out of 64% of people who made reports, only half of them saw the issue get investigated. If you find yourself in a similar situation where your employer does nothing to rectify the situation or threatens your job if you continue to make reports, you always have the option of walking away. Hopefully, you don’t have to do that, but people do, as you can see in some of the cases above.
If all else fails, you can always contact law enforcement, a local lawyer, or the EEOC themselves.
Cases of hostile workplace environments happen all the time. No matter how bad the situation becomes, just know that you are not alone. There are laws and government agencies that are specifically designed to help rectify the situation.
