EEOC settles pregnancy bias lawsuit with teen fashion retailer
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ALLENTOWN, Pa.—Teen specialty fashion retailer Delia's Inc. will pay $75,000 and change its company policies to settle a pregnancy discrimination and retaliation lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reported Thursday.
The EEOC charged in the lawsuit filed in September 2011 that managers in one of the Allentown, Pa.-based retailer's stores had harassed two employees after they informed them about their pregnancies.
In addition, fashion representative Nicole Young was terminated in retaliation for complaining about the discrimination, while co-manager Mallory Martin was forced to take early maternity leave due to the harassment even though she was physically able to continue working, according to the EEOC.
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, the EEOC said in a statement.
In addition to the $75,000 fine, the two-and-a-half-year consent decree resolving the lawsuit enjoins Delia's from further engaging in pregnancy discrimination or retaliation. The company also must provide training to all supervisors, managers and hiring officials in the company's Mid-Atlantic district on Title VII provisions addressing pregnancy discrimination and retaliation and revise its employee handbook to prohibit such behavior by the company's managers in the future.
The company did not respond to calls for comment.
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