San Antonio Wireless Store Fired Employee After She Reported Sexual Harassment, Federal Agency Charged
SAN ANTONIO -- Al Meghani Enterprises, Inc., doing business as The Wireless Solutions, a specialty retailer of wireless products, services and accessories, has agreed to pay $30,000 in damages and furnish other relief in order to settle a lawsuit for sexual harassment and retaliation filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the company’s San Antonio store manager discriminated against a female employee by subjecting her to sexual harassment. The alleged harassment included sexual comments and inappropriate text messages in which he asked the female employee to send him explicit photographs. The female employee rejected the manager’s sexual advances.
According to the EEOC’s suit, she asked the manager for the contact information of the company’s owner or corporate office so she could report the harassment. Despite her effort to get assistance, the manager, who was the highest-ranking employee at the location, refused to provide her with the requested contact numbers. The EEOC’s suit also charged that the female employee was fired in retaliation for opposing the sexual harassment.
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sexual harassment in the workplace as well as retaliation against an employee for opposing harassment. The EEOC filed its lawsuit (EEOC v. Al Meghani Enterprises, Inc. dba The Wireless Solutions, Case No. 5:21-cv-00760) in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, San Antonio Division after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.
The three-year consent decree settling the suit, entered by U.S. District Judge Jason Pulliam on August 22, 2022, prohibits future sex-based discrimination and the creation or facilitation of a work environment hostile to any employees on the basis of sex. In addition to the monetary relief, the decree requires Al Meghani to adopt a written policy against employment discrimination and provide annual training for all employees on the subject of sexual harassment.
“The EEOC commends The Wireless Solutions for quickly reaching a resolution that both compensates the harmed employee and provides for a written policy against employment discrimination designed to protect other employees from sexual harassment and retaliation,” said EEOC Trial Attorney Esha Rajendran.
EEOC Acting Supervisory Trial Attorney Meaghan Kuelbs added, “It is critical for employees to be aware of their rights under the law and to know how and to whom they can report complaints of discrimination. This settlement includes provisions that address these areas and we appreciate The Wireless Solution’s commitment to improvement.”
The San Antonio Field Office is part of the EEOC’s Dallas District Office, which is responsible for processing charges of discrimination, administrative enforcement and the conduct of agency litigation in Texas and parts of New Mexico.
The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov.
