Filed Date: March 1, 2016
Closed Date: 2018
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On March 1, 2016, the EEOC filed this lawsuit under Title VII and Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1991 against Pallet Companies in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. The complaint was filed on behalf of a female employee who alleged she had been unlawfully discharged on the basis of sexual orientation when she tried to file a complaint about sexual harassment. The EEOC sought monetary and injunctive relief.
The complaint alleged that, in 2014, the employee was sexually harassed by her supervisor regarding her sexual orientation as a lesbian. She filed a complaint about the harassment to Human Resources through the employee hotline. A Human Resources representative asked her to resign from her position. When she refused, she was discharged.
The parties immediately entered settlement discussions, and quickly came to an agreement. On June 28, 2016, Judge Catherine C. Blake approved the parties' joint consent decree. The remedy included a payment of $182,2000 to the employee, which covered $7,200 in back pay with interest and $175,000 in compensatory damages. Pallet Companies was also ordered to contribute $10,000 annually to the Human Rights Campaign for two years. In addition, the consent decree ordered the defendant to implement policies on sexual orientation and no retaliation. The agreement specified training, monitoring, and notice and posting standards for Pallet Companies to meet.
The decree provided that the court would retain jurisdiction over this matter and the parties for two years, until June 28, 2018.
The two years of enforcement passed without any further litigation, and the case is now closed.
Summary Authors
Susie Choi (1/22/2017)
Michael Beech (3/23/2019)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4287683/parties/us-equal-employment-opportunity-commission-v-pallet-companies/
Adams, Raechel (Maryland)
Akhavan, Nakkisa (Maryland)
Altmeyer, Helen Campbell (Maryland)
Anderson, Suzanne M (Maryland)
Andre, Beatriz Biscardi (Maryland)
Altmeyer, Helen Campbell (Maryland)
Anderson, Suzanne M (Maryland)
Andre, Beatriz Biscardi (Maryland)
Antanaitis, Claudia (Maryland)
Arendes, Jennifer L. (Maryland)
Backhaus, William C (Maryland)
Bean, Julie Steptoe (Maryland)
Boulton, Jennifer L (Maryland)
Calhoun, June Wallace (Maryland)
Carrillo, Gina Erin (Maryland)
Chukwu, Chioma Ifeyinwa (Maryland)
Cole, Holly Waldron (Maryland)
Coleman, Charles Franklin (Maryland)
Davis, Chandra Cain (Maryland)
Esparza-Cervantes, Elizabeth (Maryland)
Ezie, Andrea Chinyere (Maryland)
Farrell, Michael J. (Maryland)
Fiorito, Bradley S. (Maryland)
Fox, Amber Trzinski (Maryland)
Garcia-Bautista, Lorena (Maryland)
Gochanour, Gregory M. (Maryland)
Gov, Alysia Desiree (Maryland)
Gov, Gwendolyn Young (Maryland)
Gov, Christopher Woolley-Federal (Maryland)
GOVT, Rumduol Vuong (Maryland)
Grossman, Elizabeth (Maryland)
Guerrier, Charles Edward (Maryland)
Hamilton, Deborah Lois (Maryland)
Hendrickson, John C. (Maryland)
Hernandez, Evangelina Fierro (Maryland)
Hulett, Denise Marie (Maryland)
Jauregui, Juan Carlos (Maryland)
Kingsley, Andrew Burke (Maryland)
Kittle, Rita Byrnes (Maryland)
Lawrence, Debra Michele (Maryland)
Lee, Damien Anthony (Maryland)
Lee, James L. (District of Columbia)
Lepak, Thomas Scott (Maryland)
Lopez, P. David (District of Columbia)
McBride, Dennis Raymond (Maryland)
McClinton, Gregory L. (Maryland)
McCoy-Cruz, Kimberly A. (Maryland)
Mitchell, Marcia L. (Maryland)
Morocco, Maria Luisa (Maryland)
Mrizek, Richard John (Maryland)
Naccarato, Elizabeth A (Maryland)
Nardecchia, Natalie (Maryland)
Navarre-Davis, Alexandra V (Maryland)
Nyfeler, Suzanne L. (Maryland)
O'Brien, Michael J. (Maryland)
Offen-Brown, David F. (Maryland)
Oliver, Renay Michelle (Maryland)
Oppenheim, Harriett F (Maryland)
Ordonio-Dixon, Linda Susan (Maryland)
Palmer-Denig, Jessica A (Maryland)
Pearson, Gina Elaine (Maryland)
Peterson, Melanie M. (Maryland)
Phillips, Ronald L. (Maryland)
Pladson, Nicholas J (Maryland)
Reams, Gwendolyn Young (District of Columbia)
Riccardi, Sebastian Daniel (Maryland)
Rivera, Jadhira Virginia (Maryland)
Robertson, Michelle M (Maryland)
Rucker, Marsha Lynn (Maryland)
Sacher, James Philip (Maryland)
Schmitt, Suzanne Julia (Maryland)
Sellers, Catherine N. (Maryland)
Smason, Diane Ilene (Maryland)
Steenbergh, Rachael S. (Maryland)
Sustaita, Rodolfo Lucio (Maryland)
Sustaita, Rudy Lucio (Maryland)
Tamayo, William Robert (Maryland)
Thanasombat, Sirithon (Maryland)
Thompson, Eric Stephen (Maryland)
Thornton, Lillian M. (Maryland)
Tomlinson, Robert F (Maryland)
Vance, Carrie Noelle (Maryland)
Walker, Grayson Sang (Maryland)
Weisberg, Robert E. (Maryland)
White, Lindsey Anne (Maryland)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4287683/us-equal-employment-opportunity-commission-v-pallet-companies/
Last updated Feb. 6, 2025, 1:49 a.m.
State / Territory: Maryland
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: March 1, 2016
Closing Date: 2018
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
EEOC, on behalf of a LGBT employee
Plaintiff Type(s):
Attorney Organizations:
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Pallet Companies, Private Entity/Person
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Title VII (including PDA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Content of Injunction:
Develop anti-discrimination policy
Post/Distribute Notice of Rights / EE Law
Amount Defendant Pays: 202,000
Order Duration: 2016 - 2018
Issues
General/Misc.:
Discrimination Area:
Discharge / Constructive Discharge / Layoff
Harassment / Hostile Work Environment
Discrimination Basis:
EEOC-centric:
LGBTQ+: