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A.W. Farrell & Son, Inc., along with two related commercial roofing companies operating in New York and Pennsylvania, will pay $270,000 and furnish other relief to settle a sex discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced Tuesday.
In the lawsuit, the EEOC charged that a journeyman roofer's supervisor subjected him to months of unwelcome physical contact, including grabbing the area around his buttocks and jabbing his buttocks with various objects -- one time with enough force that the object penetrated him through his clothing. The supervisor also subjected the employee to repeated and unwelcome sexual comments. When the roofer reported the harassment to the company, it failed to appropriately address the conduct, and instead told the roofer to give his supervisor "another chance." When he realized the company would not protect him from future harassment, the roofer resigned in April 2022, the EEOC said.
"An employee should never be forced to resign and lose his livelihood in order to avoid being sexually harassed," said Kimberly A. Cruz, regional attorney for the EEOC's New York District. "What happened in this case was incredibly egregious, and we are glad we were able to obtain a measure of justice for this employee."
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on sex, including sexual harassment. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. A.W. Farrell & Son, Inc., et al., Case No. 25-cv-00953) in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.
Arlean Nieto, acting director of the EEOC's New York District, said, "By enacting strong policies and procedures to ensure that complaints of sexual harassment are taken seriously and adequately investigated, employers can better fulfill their obligations under federal law to create a work environment free from harassment."
In addition to the $270,000 in monetary relief, the three-year consent decree settling the suit requires anti-discrimination training; updates to company anti-discrimination policies; compliance-related reporting to the EEOC; and the posting of a notice in the workplace informing employees of the settlement and their rights under federal anti-discrimination law. In addition, the decree requires the roofing company to engage an outside professional whom employees may contact with any future reports of sex discrimination or harassment.
Along with A.W. Farrell, the other two companies covered by the decree are Jameson Roofing Company, Inc., and Northwestern Roofing Co., Inc.