A California junior college has faced three sexual harassment cases by employees. Although in two of the cases a jury found mostly in favor of the school, in at least one of the three cases the college settled with the victim.
In October, the college faced the first of the three sexual harassment allegations. The charges came from a former female dean of the school. She claimed that she suffered sexual harassment and discrimination at the hands of her co-workers. She argued that her hostile work environment created by her co-workers was a result of gender discrimination. The jury ruled mostly in the favor of the school in that case.
In January, the college reached a settlement agreement with a former secretary. The secretary had worked for a former male dean for two years. She claimed that during those two years she suffered multiple occasions of sexual harassment by her boss, including a rape. Her supervisor admitted that he had a sexual relationship with her but claimed that it was consensual.
In court documents, however the victim says her boss threatened to fire her if she did not agree to have sex with him. The college agreed that improper sexual relations took place and decided to settle the sexual harassment suit. The settlement awards the victim $2.5 million.
