| Legal Issues July 2001 Put in a Policy or Pay the Price By Jennifer R. George Mitsubishi paid a $34 million settlement in a sexual harassment claim, then developed a policy. Other companies can learn from that expensive lesson. In 1996, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a class action sexual harassment lawsuit against Mitsubishi Motor Company. The EEOC alleged that hundreds of female assembly line workers were taunted, groped, and threatened by male employees for years. Plant managers, claimed the EEOC, did nothing to investigate or correct the harassment. Though Mitsubishi denied the allegations, it eventually settled the case in 1998 for $34 millionthe largest sexual harassment settlement in history. As part of the settlement, Mitsubishi agreed to overhaul its investigations policy by providing a timetable for beginning an investigation after a complaint is made and for taking remedial action after an investigation is over. The settlement also required that the company communicate the results of an investigation to the complainant at the investigation's conclusion. A similar investigations policy is a good idea for any company. However, committing to take allegations seriously is only a starting point. Conducting a harassment or discrimination investigation can be a challenge. Security professionals must understand the legal issues, the role of investigators, planning procedures, and other special considerations that can arise. | |
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