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SHORT-SIGHTED OF EL CHAPARRO?

El Chaparro Sued By EEOC For Sexual Harassment

Owner Sexually Harassed Four Servers at Greensboro Tex-Mex Restaurant, EEOC Charges

El Chaparro, Inc. violated federal law when one of its male owners sexually harassed four female servers at its Greensboro, Ga., Tex-Mex restaurant, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a recently filed lawsuit. Although the Greensboro restaurant has closed, El Chaparro currently operates another Tex-Mex restaurant by the same name in Covington, Ga.

According to EEOC's suit, in 2013 and 2014, El Chaparro's general manager and co-owner showed the four servers pictures and videos containing sexual images, talked about the servers' sex lives, and showed the servers shirtless photos of himself on a regular, sometimes daily, basis. The servers complained about the sexual harassment to the restaurant's co-owner, but the company failed to take any action to stop the harassment. The four women are no longer employed by El Chaparro.

These alleged actions violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employers from discriminating against employees based on sex, including by subjecting them to a sexually hostile work environment. EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. El Chaparro, Inc., Civil Action No. 1:16-cv-4118-RWS-CMS) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. EEOC is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for the former servers, as well as injunctive relief designed to prevent future discrimination.

"Sexual harassment in the restaurant industry is a form of misconduct that, unfortunately, EEOC sees regularly," said Bernice Williams-Kimbrough, district director for EEOC's Atlanta District Office. "The fact that it was a proprietor of the restaurant who allegedly subjected the four servers to sexual harassment makes the conduct even more intolerable."

EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws against employment discrimination. Further information is available at www.eeoc.gov.

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