Long Island Boss Pays for Firing Employee Who Rejected Sexual Advances

Image of Raymond Townsend via LinkedIn

Justice has been served for a woman who was fired by a married Long Island limo company manager because she refused to give in to his sexual advances.

Raymond Townsend, former manager of US Limousine in New Hyde Park, was ordered to pay several hundred thousand dollars in legal damages and fees to Geralyn Ganci, 32, in a sexual harassment suit.

“What happened to Ms. Ganci could have, and should have, been avoided,” Ganci’s lawyer Debra Wabnik told Patch.

Townsend had texted Ganci that he was firing her because she refused to engage in sexual relations with him, New York Post reports.

“The jury’s verdict in this case, in particular the punitive damages it awards, is a reminder to employers of the hurdles they face in the labor and employment arena,” Wabnik said.

Ganci went to the hospital in extreme emotional distress caused by Townsend’s actions, which included forcing Ganci into a bathroom to put his hands up her shirt and texting the victim that he pulled over while driving to think about her while he masturbated, the Post reports.

Townsend and US Limousine are liable to pay more than $700,000 in legal damages and fees, according to the Post. The legal fees awarded to Ganci were finalized in early April.

The original sexual harassment complaint, filed in 2010, stated that Townsend would constantly call Ganci to “convey disgusting, sexually suggestive, erotic and vile messages of a sexual nature,” according to the Daily Mail.

Wabnik hopes Townsend’s actions will encourage other businesses to have proper workplace policies in place.

“We are pleased with the verdict and that justice was served,” she said.

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