Lake Jackson resident Kristin Lee Dial filed a complaint in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas against Shell Deer Park Refinery. Dial claims she was wrongfully terminated from her post after she reported a sexual harassment incident.

According to the lawsuit, Dial had a short-lived relationship with her co-worker, Christopher Carrizales, outside of the workplace. Dial said during her employment from August 2014 through December 2014, she was sexually harassed by Carrizales after she ended her relationship with him. She then reported Carrizales’ behavior to her team leader, Benjamin Stafford, who told her if she reported the incident to human resources, she and Carrizales would be terminated from their posts.

Our attorneys at The Melton Law Firm provide legal services for clients in Austin and other areas of Texas. We handle employment issues such as discrimination, sexual harassment, and equal pay, among others. Contact us at (512) 330-0017 to learn more about your legal options.

The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced on Wednesday, September 21 that a Texas Roadhouse franchisee in Ohio settled a 1.4 million dollar lawsuit lodged against it.

The EEOC said restaurant manager Eric Price subjected female employees, including teenagers, to inappropriate touching and requests for sexual favors in exchange for employment benefits. Even though he received numerous complaints since 2007, he wasn’t taken off his post until May 2011 when surveillance video showed him inappropriately touching a 17-year-old in his office.

Ellen Toth, an attorney, said the lesson in this case is that “employers have to be able to show their employees and prove to a judge or jury that they promptly, thoroughly and honestly investigated each complaint they received. This lesson is magnified when an employer receives complaints of physical touching of underage women.” Under the settlement contract, the companies need to track and report all discrimination and retaliation complaints in accordance to a five-year consent decree.

Toth said retail and restaurant operations far from corporate headquarters may want to practice reporting such complaints by giving contact information for regional and corporate human resource professionals. Other options include providing anonymous Internet and telephone hotlines and scheduling regional and division management to make unannounced visits during non-peak hours to uncover hidden issues.

If you suffered injustice or maltreatment at your place of work in Austin or another area of Texas, get in touch with our attorneys at The Melton Law Firm by calling our offices today at (512) 330-0017. We can file the appropriate lawsuit against the people responsible for your mistreatment.

Wills Point resident Cathy McCoy filed a lawsuit on Thursday, July 14 in the Marshall Division of the Eastern District of Texas against the City of Van, claiming sexual harassment and wrongful termination.

According to the legal complaint that McCoy filed, the city subjected her to a hostile work environment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and eventually unlawful termination between May 2014 and July 2015. McCoy said after a training officer sexually harassed her, the City of Van refused to transfer her to a new training officer. She was therefore exposed to a hostile working environment every day for the duration of her employment. The city fired her after claiming that she did not have the ability to complete her training, McCoy claimed. McCoy is suing for emotional pain, inconvenience, mental anguish, loss of wages, and loss of enjoyment of life.

The employment attorneys at The Melton Law Firm handle employment concerns and problems such as hostile working environment and wrongful termination cases. To learn more about your legal options and rights or to discuss your situation, speak with our attorneys by calling our Austin offices today at (512) 330-0017.

A member of the Austin police force is suing the city for gender discrimination. The officer filing the complaint, Aaron Van Bishop, took legal action after his supervisors allegedly ignored his complaints that he was being sexually harassed by a female co-worker.

The co-worker in question, Brenda Bermudez, filed a lawsuit herself last year claiming that she had been sexually harassed by several male co-workers. She also claimed that she was the victim of retaliation from her supervisors after reporting the instances of sexual assault.

Bishop, however, claims that Bermudez wrongfully accused him of sexually harassing her, and when he reported to his supervisors that Bermudez had sexually harassed him, no action was taken.

Sexual harassment on the job is a very serious matter, and if you have been the victim of sexual harassment at your place of work, you deserve a chance to pursue justice. Contact the Austin sexual harassment lawyers of The Melton Law Firm, at (512) 330-0017 to find out more about your legal rights and options and to discuss your situation with an experienced professional.

Detective Brenda Bermudez of the Austin Police Department in Texas recently filed a lawsuit against the city after claiming that her co-police officers and the department treated her unfairly in the workplace, KVUE reported on December 31.

Bermudez stated that her co-workers retaliated against her and provided a hostile working environment after she reported sexual harassment performed by her colleagues while she was a team member in the Human Trafficking Unit in 2010.

According to the lawsuit, Bermudez accused her male co-workers of molesting unclothed female victims in sting operations. She was then often teased if she would do the same to the nude female prostitution victims who they rescued, as she was a lesbian. In this way, she was often the subject of offensive jokes.

When she reported the behavior, she was transferred to a different department, while no measures were taken against the colleagues she claimed acted inappropriately.

Workers enjoy legal protections in the state of Texas. Do not hesitate to file a lawsuit against your employer or other parties if these rights are trampled on; call the employment attorneys of the The Melton Law Firm in Austin at (512) 330-0017 today to begin taking action.