Posted by: Melville Johnson, PC
April 25, 2008
Topic: Employment Discrimination
The Attorneys with Melville Johnson, P.C. can provide legal representation for you in this type of case:
The attorneys with Melville Johnson, P.C. have significant experience representing both private and federal employees, who allege that they have been subjected to a hostile work environment on the basis of their gender. The firm can represent you throughout the entire administrative process and throughout the litigation phase in court. In 1999, Ms. Nancy Billings began working a the secretary to the Graftown administrator, Mr. Russell Connor, Jr. Ms. Billings alleges that within a few months of her beginning her employment, she noticed Mr. Connor staring at her breasts. As a result, Ms. Billings made attempts to avoid being alone with Mr. Connor and would hold paper in front of her chest as she walked through the office. Due to Mr. Connor staring at her breasts, on one occasion, Ms. Billings went home to change her clothes in the hopes that would make Mr. Connor stop. When Ms. Billings complained to other female employees about the situation, they also advised that Mr. Connor had stared at their breasts. Ms. Billings also filed a complaint with the Board of Selectmen.
An investigation was completed, as a result of ms. Billings complaint, but their was no action taken against Mr. Connor. During the investigation, Mr. Connor explained that his staring stemmed from a diagnosed medical condition that caused his eyes to dart. At the request of Mr. Connor, in 2003, the Board of Selectmen transferred Ms. Billings to a secretarial job in the Recreation Department. While this new position was of comparable pay, Ms. Billings contends that she was transferred in retaliation for her complaint against Mr. Connor and that the new position is of less prestige than her previous position.
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit concluded that the District Court Judge erred when he dismissed Ms. Billings' lawsuit. The three member panel for the Court Appeals for the First Circuit found that Ms. Billings' complaint had raised serious claims, including that Mr. Connor created a hostile work environment by staring at the breasts of several employees and after Ms. Billings complained to the Board of Selectmen, Mr. Connor had retaliated against her by transferring her to another job. The case has been referred back to the District Court for further processing.
This article is largely based on an article written by Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff, with the Boston Globe, appearing on February 8, 2008.
