Ingles boss rubs penis on cashier, she complains — and gets fired, NC lawsuit says
A cashier at an Ingles grocery store in North Carolina says she was fired after taking her complaints about workplace sexual harassment to the store manager.
Now she’s suing the Asheville-based supermarket chain for employment discrimination.
The 54-year-old woman said she was repeatedly subject to crude gestures and inappropriate remarks by the assistant store manager at an Ingles in western North Carolina, according to a federal lawsuit.
He reportedly told her “I want to get me some of that.”
A representative for Ingles Markets Inc. declined to comment on “personnel matters or litigation,” but counsel for the employee told McClatchy News he “hopes this is not happening to other individuals.” He declined to comment further.
The employee said she “still suffers anxiety” and hopes Ingles will handle any future issues of sexual harassment “with more compassion.”
According to the complaint filed Jan. 17, the employee began working at Ingles in 2015 as a cashier but was subsequently promoted to a customer service manager.
During that time, her assistant store manager repeatedly expressed “his desire to have sexual intercourse with plaintiff.” He also rubbed her shoulders without asking and would repeatedly “rub his penis through his pants for plaintiff to see,” her attorneys said in the complaint.
“This made plaintiff feel very uncomfortable,” the lawsuit states.
These incidents happened repeatedly — sometimes next to her register or when they were alone in the employee office, according to the complaint.
“(He) would come up behind plaintiff and would place the front of his pants on plaintiff’s butt so that she could feel his penis,” the lawsuit states.
He also rubbed his arms on her chest while assisting in scanning items, her attorneys said in the complaint. One supervisor reportedly told her it was “the good-old-boy mentality.”
The employee ultimately reported the assistant store manager’s conduct to the store manager and was fired, according to the lawsuit.
The complaint makes claims for gender discrimination, retaliation and intentional or negligent infliction of emotional distress. She is seeking more than $200,000 in compensatory and punitive damages.
This story was originally published January 22, 2020 at 7:27 PM.
