Sexual harassment continues to be a notable problem in employment, despite decades of focused attention to the problem across all American industries. Startups and other high-tech companies have recently reported problems, making the problem of discrimination an important one in the industry’s unofficial capital in California.
A former senior operations manager recently sued a Silicon Valley-based startup after his dismissal. He claims he was wrongfully terminated after reporting sexual harassment of female colleagues by their managers.
The charges include examples of unprofessional speech and requests, such as a male manager discussing sexual acts with a female employee who reported to him. The fired manager also claimed a male manager asked a female report to bring him an aid for sexual activity.
The plaintiff was terminated several weeks after reporting these incidents to the head of human resources. The lawsuit claims this was a retaliatory action against a person unwilling to let sexual harassment continue.
The chief executive officer (CEO) of the startup claims he is very serious in resolving these charges, as well as an unrelated suit filed days later regarding the company’s payment and work break practices.
“That kind of behavior has no place [here], and we’re not going to tolerate it,” the CEO said in a statement. “We need to continue to raise the bar for policies, procedures and programs.”
The high-tech industry in California and elsewhere is reeling from charges of sexual harassment and discrimination from corporate operations to venture capital.
Victims of these illegal practices are encouraged to seek legal representation so they can fight any organization that dismisses people for fighting these negative trends.
Source: TechCrunch, “SoFi responds to sexual harassment and wage lawsuits,” Katie Roof, Sep. 01, 2017