Tennessee Injury Lawyer Blog
It appears that the Cheesecake Factory was allowing some of its male employees to be treated more like beefcake. In a settlement agreement, Cheesecake Factory must pay six employees a total of $345,000 for sexual harassment. The suit claimed that management knew about and tolerated the behavior.
The men complained repeatedly to management that they were treated in a demeaning and degrading manner by other male members of the staff. They described inappropriate touching, simulation of rape and making sexual remarks. On one occasion managers witnessed the men being dragged, kicking and screaming, into a cooler and did nothing. Even the police department investigation got them nowhere.
Now, in order to avoid further legal action, Cheesecake Factory has signed a consent decree. While the decree does not acknowledge any wrongdoing, it agrees to have sexual harassment training for Cheesecake Factory employees and to appoint an ombudsman to investigate and deal with any complaints of this nature. Failure to do so could result in fines being levied by the court.
Tennessee and federal law protects workers from workplace sexual harassment. If you feel that you’ve been a victim of this type of behavior please contact us at Employment.HHPFirm.com or call us at 1-800-705-2121.
