The restaurant chain Cheesecake Factory has agreed to pay $345,000 to settle an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) lawsuit alleging that that six male employees were subjected to repeated sexual harassment at a restaurant in Arizona.
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Download NowIn the lawsuit, the EEOC alleged that Cheesecake knew about and tolerated repeated sexual assaults against six male employees by a group of male kitchen staffers, including touching genitals, making sexually charged remarks, and forcing the employees into repeated episodes of simulated rape. The company denied the allegations.
The employees said they complained but the restaurant failed to respond adequately. The EEOC says one employee ended up calling the police in an effort to stop the behavior.
In addition tp paying $345,00, the company agreed to train its employees and managers about sexual harassment and institute an ombudsman to field and address sexual harassment complaints by employees.