Delaware County Sexual Harassment Lawyers

A host of sexual harassment claims have recently been filed against XPO Logistics, a supply chain firm that provides warehouses and shipping services. The claims were filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) by several workers of an XPO Logistics warehouse in Memphis, Tennessee. Complaints include employees being groped and verbally harassed by their supervisors.

In one claim, a male supervisor is accused of grabbing his female employee’s buttocks while walking by with a colleague. After reporting the incident to the human resources department, the employee was retaliated against by the supervisor. She eventually quit.

The female employees at XPO Logistics make every effort to hold onto their jobs for the pay and benefits. Many of them are the sole breadwinners for their families. Most of the female employees are African American, while their supervisors are white males. Gloria Sweet-Love, President of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in Tennessee, has been involved in tracking the cases.

A History of Sexual Harassment

The previous owner of XPO Logistics, New Breed Logistics, was sued by the EEOC in 2010 for harassment and retaliation involving three female workers in Memphis. A jury awarded the workers $1.5 million in damages. While the case was on appeal, XPO Logistics bought the facility. A spokesperson for XPO Logistics has stated that their culture promotes safety and respect, with zero tolerance for harassment. Yet, New Breed’s human resources director and corporate counsel retained their jobs at XPO Logistics.

Influence Over Supply Chain Tested

XPO Logistics provides logistics services to Verizon and several other large companies. Many Fortune 500 companies have taken a stand of zero tolerance of sexual harassment. Zero tolerance means that sexual harassment is forbidden in the workplace. Verizon is among the companies with this policy.

At a recent women’s conference, hosted by Verizon-owned Oath, Verizon’s CEO proclaimed that Verizon has zero tolerance for harassment at any firm with which they do business. In response, the Tennessee chapter of the NAACP, the National Women’s Law Center, and others sent a letter to the CEO of Verizon, stating how they are concerned with how Verizon ensures safe working conditions for their employees.

Verizon Leadership Gets Involved

Lawyers from both Verizon and XPO Logistics have since met. Verizon sent a follow-up letter to XPO Logistics indicating that the allegations of sexual harassment are very serious and stated that Verizon expects XPO Logistics to fully investigate the charges and take any necessary remedial action promptly and decisively.

Programs to foster zero tolerance typically include training on what constitutes sexual harassment, encouraging witnesses of harassment to intervene or report inappropriate behavior, maintaining records of reported incidents, investigating reported harassment, and taking corrective action to stop the harassment, which may include retraining, demoting, or firing violators.