Lawsuit alleges female workers were harassed at Detroit Stellantis complex, federal agency says
(CBS DETROIT) — A federal lawsuit alleges female employees at a Stellantis assembly complex in Detroit were sexually harassed, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
The agency says the lawsuit claims female employees were harassed by male supervisors and coworkers with explicit comments and inappropriate touching.
The lawsuit, according to the agency, alleges some of the women complained to the company, who failed to act in response to some complaints and responded in an untimely or careless manner to other complaints.
According to the EEOC, the hostile work environment caused one of the women to resign.
The alleged conduct violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on sex, says the EEOC.
The lawsuit was reportedly filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on Friday, and names FCA US, LLC as the defendant. FCA US, LLC is a subsidiary of Stellantis.
"Employers cannot normalize offensive sex-based misconduct," said EEOC Trial Attorney Karen Brooks. "Such behavior must be as unacceptable in an automobile plant as anywhere else. By tolerating known sexual harassment, employers violate federal law."
Stellantis has declined to comment since the case is pending.
