EMPLOYMENT SEXUAL HARASSMENT: Glendale Restaurant Faces Sexual Harassment and Retaliation Charges

March 1, 2011

Phoenix, Arizona – Arizona-based Gala AZ Holdings, Inc., also known as Del Taco, is now facing sexual harassment and retaliation charges after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed a lawsuit Tuesday in a case that occurred in its Glendale branch, the agency announced.

According to the suit, an assistant manager of Del Taco in its Glendale branch sexually- harassed Adriana Lopez. Lopez said the manager fondled himself in front of her, grabbed her buttocks, and tried to touch her breasts.

Lopez then complained to her superiors about the incident. However, instead of taking action against the harasser, the management laid her off and later terminated her.

Under the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, employees should not be subject to harassment based on race, age, sex, national origin and religion, as well as retaliatory practices.

“Employers must take complaints and discrimination seriously and address them appropriately”, said EEOC District Director Rayford O. Irvin. He said the EEOC will not tolerate employers who commit this grave mistake.