EEOC sues for alleged gay bias in two groundbreaking lawsuits
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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has for the first time filed lawsuits claiming that the law barring discrimination based on sex covers harassment against gays and lesbians.
The EEOC announced the lawsuits in a press release on Tuesday, the Huffington Post reports. One suit against Scott Medical Health Center in Pittsburgh claims a supervisor used epithets to refer to a gay employee and made offensive comments about his sexuality and sex life. The other suit against IFCO Systems in Maryland claims a supervisor made comments about a lesbian employee’s sexual orientation and appearance, telling her “I want to turn you back into a woman.”
The EEOC ruled in a 2015 case that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act bars harassment and discrimination because of sexual orientation. The agency has also made the argument in an amicus brief filed with a federal appeals court.
Hat tip to @sbagen.
