The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued Minden Seafood (Minden) for alleged sexual harassment and retaliation. Minden is headquartered in Minden, Louisiana. The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

The allegations are that female employees were subjected to unwelcome sexual advances and comments by a male supervisor. It is also alleged that the employer retaliated against employees who complained about the harassment.

During the legal proceedings, Minden denied the allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation. Minden further alleged it had policies in place to prevent harassment and that it took appropriate actions when complaints were made. Minden also alleged the alleged incidents were either "exaggerated" or did not occur as described by the plaintiffs.

The EEOC seeks compensatory and punitive damages for the affected employees, as well as injunctive relief to prevent future harassment. https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/eeoc-sues-minden-seafood-sexual-harassment-and-retaliation (09-30-24).

Commentary

In the matter, the sexual harassment alleged was based on unwelcome comments. Sexual comments can include jokes or comments with sexual content.

Sexual flirting can also lead to sexual harassment charges. This can include forms of sexual flattery such as commenting how a person looks or comments about a person's dress or body. Even if the flirting is complimentary, it can be considered unwelcome and lead to a claim of a hostile work environment.

Sexual harassment can also take the form of inappropriate questions such as questions about a person's sexual history or preferences. Especially risky are questions about sexual experiences or preferences with a spouse or partner.

Unwanted sexual comments can be made via voice in-person or on the phone or online through a virtual meeting. Sexual comments via text can create a hostile working environment, including via email, instant messaging, social media, other or communication applications. 

Here are some steps to take to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace:

• Incorporate into your mission that workplace participants be treated equally, fairly, and respectfully
• Establish policies, procedures, and standards that promote equality, require civility, and respect boundaries and adhere to policies, including policies that prohibit sexual harassment
• Enforce your organization's policies, procedures, and standards, including those that prohibit sexual harassment
• Encourage all workplace participants to report sexual harassment that they view, discover or reasonably suspect is occurring
• Avoid hiring or selecting applicants or workers with a history of sexual harassment
• When hiring require work and personal references and ask the references if the applicant has a history of sexual harassment, sexual harassment complaints, uncivil or disrespectful behavior, and/or ignoring boundaries. If the answer is yes, move onto another applicant
• Review the public social media pages of applicants to determine if they engage others in a civil and respectful manner and if they respect the boundaries of others
• Make certain all workplace participants go through an orientation program, which includes policies prohibiting discrimination and harassment
• Discipline any employee — regardless of title, status, or duties — who engages in, encourages, or promotes sexual harassment, is uncivil to workplace participants, and/or ignores boundaries of others and/or the organization
• Discipline any employee — regardless of title, status, or duties — who makes a knowingly false claim of sexual harassment
• Make certain all terminations are based on provable and documented objective factors, related to job performance, and not based on subjective, arbitrary, or illegal factors, including terminations for reporting, complaining, and/or providing testimony about sexual harassment
• Make certain that new leadership treats existing employees equally, fairly, and legally prior to hire or transfer and does not have a history of sexual harassment, sexual harassment complaints, uncivil or disrespectful behavior, and/or complaints regarding respecting boundaries of others
• Document all actions related to termination or discipline of workers, including workers accused of sexual harassment
• Require all workplace participants to take sexual harassment prevention training in a language they understand
• Require all workers to take diversity equality and inclusion and civility training in a language the trainee can understand
• Provide several safe and effective means for workplace participants to report sexual harassment
• Consider prohibiting sexual and/or intimate relationships between coworkers
• Clearly communicate, through policies, procedures and postings, the means and process by which workplace participants can report sexual harassment
• Allow for a means by which workplace participants can report sexual harassment anonymously without fear of retaliation
• Investigate all reports and reasonable suspicions of sexual harassment in a thorough, prompt, and objective manner
• Consider the use of third-party investigators for sexual harassment investigations that involve executive management, more than one complainant, charges of sexual assault or abuse or where there is a conflict of interest with investigators that are workplace participants
• Prohibit retaliation against workplace participants who report or complain about sexual harassment or who are involved in investigations regarding sexual harassment
• Provide a safe and effective means for workplace participants, who report or complain about sexual harassment or who are involved in investigations regarding