Crime & Safety
80-Year-Old Alameda Man Groped, Sexually Harassed Caregivers: Lawsuit Claims
The federal lawsuit claims that workers were sexually harassed by the man and the caregiver's company did nothing to protect them.
SAN LEANDRO, CA — A San Leandro-based home health care company has been sued by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for allegedly allowing the sexual harassment of its caregivers by an 80-year client and retaliating against a caregiver who complained.
The EEOC filed the civil rights lawsuit against R. MacArthur Corp. in federal court in Oakland on Monday. The suit alleges that an 80-year-old client, who lived with his wife in Alameda, sexually harassed five female caregivers through lewd remarks and invitations to engage in sexual activities between January 2014
and June 2016, when the man died.
Four of the women were allegedly groped or touched by the client. Three of the caregivers were black and were allegedly harassed on the basis of race as well as sex. The lawsuit alleges that all five caregivers complained of the harassment, but the company took no corrective action.
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It also alleges that one caregiver asked to be assigned to a different client, but was not reassigned and was given a suggestion that she should work for a different company.
The lawsuit asks for a court injunction requiring R. MacArthur Corp. to cease from allowing a hostile work environment, provide equal opportunities for women, and give the caregivers back pay and other compensation.
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EEOC District Director William Tamayo said in a statement that the law requires employers to ensure that workers are protected from sexual harassment, even when that workplace is non-traditional, such as a client's
home, and even when the alleged harasser is a customer or client.
— Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock
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