State agency settles sexual harassment claim for $800,000

[Omaha Steve]

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420ap_wa_harassment_settlement.html

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

TACOMA, Wash. -- A Washington state agency is paying about $800,000 to settle a sexual harassment claim by three women.

The case was brought by three women in the Tacoma office of the Department of Labor and Industries. They claim they were repeatedly harassed and intimidated by a co-worker, Phillip Scott, and Carter Mitchell, a supervisor. They also say one woman was racially harassed and that a manager, Gail Hughes, refused to deal with the problems.

Two plaintiffs, Linda Bang and Janis Fleming, still work in the office. A lawyer for the three, Darrell Cochran, says the third, Mercy Fernandez-Figueroa, left the job because of the stress of the harassment and the lawsuit. They were seeking $1.1 million.

State Assistant Attorney General Mark Anderson says the settlement was reached Jan. 16 in mediation.