Des Moines, IA- An Iowa woman who was subjected to sexual harassment at the toy company she once worked at was awarded nearly $12 million by an Iowa jury.
The Iowa jury awarded Danielle Rennenger $10 million in punitive damages and $1.9 million in compensatory damages, according Insurance Journal.
In her federal lawsuit, Rennenger, said that a male supervisor and make coworker at a call center for Toy Quest made repeated and vulgar comments towards her. The lawsuit alleges the verbal harassment was a daily occurrence and was severe and in one especially troubling incident one of the harassers took Rennenger’s head and shoved it into his crotch, Insurance Journal reported.
Rennenger also alleged she witnessed other women being treated the same way she was and when she complained about the harassment she was fired.
Although the jury awarded Rennenger a large sum, her sexual harassment attorney said she was unlikely to collect any of the settlement since ToyQuest is owned by several parent companies. This makes it difficult to identify which entity is responsible for paying the settlement.
As for Rennenger, she said she was pleased the jury believed her allegations and was satisfied that future employees will know how to report incidents of sexual harassment.
The facts in this case are similar to the majority of sexual harassment cases. An employee experiences inappropriate behavior over and over. They try to put a stop to it only to have their employer ignore them and then fire them. This pattern repeats itself over and over again in Iowa workplaces.
Almost half of working men and women who are sexually harassed on the job never come forward. They simply put up with the harassment and try to go about their day with little thought about how it affects them personally and how it affects the workplace as a whole.
Victims of sexual harassment don’t speak up for themselves because they worry their complaints will be ignored. Or, even worse, they will be fired or face other forms of retaliation. Their fears aren’t unfounded since retaliation is fairly common for sexual harassment victims and many employers just chose to ignore complains of workplace abuses. That’s unfortunate for the target of harassment, but there are actions they can pursue to end the harassment and get the justice they deserve.
A victim’s should first contact a sexual harassment lawyer near their Iowa location to determine what their legal rights are whether they are eligible for compensation. Proving sexual harassment can be challenging which is why the victims will benefit from having legal help. If you are the victim of sexual harassment or other workplace abuses, contact one of the employment law attorneys at USAttorneys to put an end to your abuse and get you the compensation you deserve. If you don’t take action your abuse will continue and other people will be targeted. Call a lawyer today and get the advice you need.
