Employee wins $500K for defamation
November 6, 2008 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Harassment, In this week's e-newsletter, Investigations, Latest News & Views
Another reason companies need to complete thorough investigations when they receive complaints about employees:
They could get hit with defamation claims if they believe and act on false allegations.
In one recent case, an employee was fired after her co-worker lodged a complaint with management. He claimed the woman told him she planned to take a gun to work and shoot her fellow employees.
The twist: The woman claimed she never made such a statement. She said the co-worker had sexually harassed her and was trying to get her fired before she could file a complaint.
However, the company not only fired her, but also told police about the alleged threats, leading to her being detained and searched by law enforcement.
The woman sued the co-worker and the company for defamation. A jury took her side and awarded her $500,000.
Cite: Chang-Craft v. Cameron and Alaska Airlines, Inc.
Tags: defamation, false accusation, jury
January 21st, 2009 at 10:25 am
So what is an employer to do in this situation – where the statement is made that the comment happened, but the person who supposedly said it denies it? What is the company’s obligation – and what if it was true and she actually did bring a gun to work and follow through – then certainly the company has liability – this type of situation is impossible. What is your policy when it comes down to “he said, she said?”
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Getting the two people together in one (safe) room and hammering it out with pointed questions might trip somebody up and other circumstances could come to light.
February 26th, 2009 at 7:43 pm
From the scant information provided in the article I don’t think we have all the facts. It sounds as if the company jumped the gun and made a guilty determination based solely upon the allegation the male employee made against her. This would lead me to think he had more “standing” within the company whether it was seniority or prestige by position. Who knows? Bottom line is…they didn’t investigate the situation to it’s fullest before terminating the employee. And that’s where the real liability happened. If they had, they may have been able to see what the truth was before taking such drastic action.
As for getting them together in a room, under harassment laws, she has her rights and putting her in the room with the person she was going to report violates them. Her not having the opportunity as yet to report him for sexual harassment doesn’t negate them. When a volatile situation is happening it’s best to NOT put them in a room together, but to interview separately and fully.
Then make determinations based upon the investigation by SEVERAL parties. Safest route for the company. Which is what it’s about to begin with.