Goodwill Industries of the Greater East Bay will pay $850,000 to settle an employee sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit.
A federal judge signed off on the settlement with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission yesterday.
Six female janitors on the night shift at the Oakland Federal Building between 2010 and 2012 say they were harassed by a direct supervisor at Calidad, the Goodwill affiliate that employs the severely physically or mentally disabled via its federal contracts, like cleaning the federal building. They claimed that then-supervisor Warren Ross engaged in repeated sexually offensive verbal and physical acts—including pressing his genitals against them, openly fondling himself through his clothing and asking about the women's sex lives, such as whether one's partner had "hit that."
Former employee Crystal Edwards was 19-years-old when she worked at Calidad—her first job.
"I enjoyed being able to earn my own money,” said Edwards. “But after my boss put his arms around me, I did not feel safe at work. My complaints were ignored. I'm so glad the EEOC filed this lawsuit to stop the harassment and to make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.”