Federal Agency Sues Las Vegas Restaurants for Sexual Harassment

Federal agency sues Las Vegas restaurant for sexual harassment

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed four sexual harassment lawsuits at Las Vegas restaurants this week.

According to a press release in U.S. District Court against Bouchon, Nevada Restaurant Services Inc., Maricos El Puerto and La Catrina, owners, supervisors and management, employees and/or customers have filed employee sexual harassment lawsuits, according to the federal agency.

Bouchon operates Bouchon at the Venetian, the upscale French restaurant opened in 2004 by chef Thomas Keller. According to the EEOC, female and male employees at the restaurant were harassed "on a daily basis" and "some employees who made complaints suffered retaliation."

Nevada Restaurant Services, owner and operator of the Dotty's casino chain and the Laughlin River Lodge hotel-casino, has "condoned sexual harassment since at least 2018," the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said.

The EEOC claimed in its press release that "even after filing harassment complaints with the Department of Human Resources, Nevada Restaurant Services failed to address and correct the harassment, forcing some employees to resign because it was their only option to escape the harassment."

Harassment Allegations Against Mariscos El Puerto

In a separate case against Mariscos El Puerto, an off-the-Las Vegas Strip restaurant and bar La Catrina, EEO charges include verbal harassment and physical assault of gay employees, according to a news release.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits hostile work environments based on sex, including sexual harassment, and retaliation against anyone who complains of sexual harassment or engages in other protected activity.

"What happens in Vegas will not be silenced," Michael Mendoza, director of the EEOC's Las Vegas office, said in a statement. "These actions have consequences, and when employers The EEOC will not stand by while allowing its employees to be harassed by co-workers, supervisors, and even customers. This should be a wake-up call for employers that the EEOC will hold you accountable for violating federal law.”

The EEOC said in all cases it filed lawsuits after first trying to reach a pre-litigation settlement.