A Mountain Home pain clinic and Baxter Health have agreed to pay $350,000 to settle a federal lawsuit that accused them of firing an employee in retaliation after she spoke up about sexual harassment.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced the settlement last week. The case centered around Interventional Pain Management Associates (IPMA) and Baxter Health in Mountain Home.
According to court documents, IPMA and Baxter Health fired an employee in retaliation for her opposition to the sexual harassment of a co-worker. After receiving a complaint of sexual harassment on or about April 2019 from a medical technician against an IPMA physician and co-founder, Baxter Health’s human resources department investigated. When HR interviewed the physician assistant, she confirmed the medical technician’s allegations, including describing sexually explicit text messages from the physician shown to her by the medical technician. As a result of the investigation, the accused physician took a sabbatical leave.
Three years later, another IPMA doctor, who knew the physician assistant had helped with the investigation of his colleague, asked her to resign. When she refused, she was fired. Unknown at the time to the doctor, the assistant had recorded the conversation, which included an admission that she was being forced out because she spoke up during the harassment investigation.
The EEOC said this firing was illegal under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which protects employees from retaliation if they report or oppose sexual harassment.
On January 29 of this year, U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks rejected arguments from IPMA and Baxter Health that they were not responsible as joint employers. He allowed the case to move forward to a jury before the settlement was reached.
As part of the agreement, IPMA and Baxter Health must not only pay the $350,000 but also update their sexual harassment and retaliation policies and provide annual training to all staff.
In a statement, Baxter Health said: “The recent EEOC investigation has reached a settlement. Although the parties agreed to settle this dispute in order to avoid the additional expense and hardship to our employees of litigation in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Baxter Health continues to dispute the allegations. Baxter Health’s ongoing training for all employees encompasses safeguards for our employees to maintain a safe, respectful, and professional workplace, and we look forward to providing additional education and training for employees.”
The EEOC says the settlement should serve as a warning to other employers. “This case sends a strong message to other employers that the EEOC remains committed to ensuring a workplace free of retaliation,” stated Faye Williams, an EEOC attorney.
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