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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
WASHINGTON—The operators of an Applebee's restaurant in Bismarck, N.D., will pay $1 million in compensatory damages to 17 female former employees who allegedly experienced sexual harassment and retaliation over a six-year period at the hands of a former store general manager, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said Thursday.
The EEOC said Food Management Investors Inc. and Apple Core Enterprises Inc., both based in Minot, N.D., violated federal civil rights laws by permitting former Bismarck South Applebee's general manager Mike Cordova to create a pattern and practice of sexual harassment and retaliation that included his alleged regular groping of female employees, solicitation of sexual relations and exposing himself between 2002 and 2007.
He also “allegedly exposed employees to pornography, told sexually explicit stories and jokes, and made highly personalized sexual comments designed to demean and humiliate female employees,” and on at least one occasion “allegedly coerced an employee into giving him oral sex in exchange for a raise,” according to the EEOC.
Applebee’s allegedly failed to discipline or stop his behavior at its Bismarck Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar despite repeated complaints, according to the EEOC.
The companies also are required to implement a comprehensive training program to enable its employees to identify sexual harassment and properly investigate internal complaints, according to the EEOC.