On March 29, 2002, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC"), on behalf of a female employee (plaintiff-intervenor) at a trucking company, filed a lawsuit in the Northern District Court of Alabama under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, against Ryder/ATE, Inc. The EEOC sought injunctive relief, compensatory damages, punitive damages, attorneys' fees and costs, and other forms of affirmative relief claiming that the defendant, through the actions of one of its supervisors, was liable for sexual harassment.

According to the complaint, starting in the fall of 2008 and continuing into 2009, the plaintiff-intervenor at defendant's Alabama worksite was subjected to offensive sexual comments and inappropriate touching of private body parts by her supervisor. In order to avoid this sexual harassment, the complainant transferred to another lesser paying job. She also took time off of work because of the emotional distress she experienced. The defendant acknowledged that, in January 1999, the complainant reported the sexual harassment to the General Manager. Nothing was done until she made a second report in July 1999.


On July 23, 2002, the employee who suffered the sexual harassment filed a complaint as the plaintiff-intervenor. On October 10, 2002, the EEOC and plaintiff-intervenor filed an amended complaint. On September 9, 2003, the District Court (Judge U.W. Clemon) issued a consent decree where the defendant had to pay the plaintiff-intervenor $85,000 and reinstate her in her previous position, with seniority.

Perry Miska - 04/07/2014


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