Judge Rules Coffee Request Wasn't Sex Harassment
A federal judge has ruled that a receptionist who was fired for refusing to serve coffee to her supervisors can’t sue for sex discrimination.
U.S. District Judge Berle Schiller of Philadelphia ruled that serving coffee is “not a gender-specific act” and the job requirement cannot be grounds for a lawsuit, the Legal Intelligencer reports. Nor can the plaintiff claim she was treated differently from other similarly situated employees, Schiller said, because there is only one receptionist in the office and the position has always been held by women.
“By October 26, 2006, the controversy was really brewing,” the judge wrote in his opinion (PDF). That’s when plaintiff Tamara Klopfenstein received an e-mailed reprimand for refusing to serve her boss coffee. She responded with this e-mail:
“I don’t have a problem getting coffee and/or water for our guests when they come in. I don’t expect to serve and wait on you by making and serving you coffee every day at 3:00.” She was fired nine minutes after she sent the e-mail.
Klopfenstein found the coffee request demeaning and embarrassing. She testified in a deposition that it “reinforced outdated gender stereotypes.”
Lawyers for Klopfenstein said they plan to appeal.
