Just because a harasser is anonymous doesn’t mean a company can eschew its obligations to investigate an employee’s complaint. It’s a lesson learned the hard way for United Airlines, according to Gauri Punjabi of Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo. “Failure to investigate all good faith complaints of harassment can result in serious liability for the employer under the anti-discrimination statues,” she warns.
In the case, an African-American flight attendant found a note in her company mailbox depicting a person hanging from a noose, accompanied by derogatory language and threats, says Punjabi. The flight attendant complained to her supervisor but he didn’t act according to the airline’s harassment and discrimination policy, nor did other supervisors when they learned about the threat. They also refused to cooperate with police.
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