The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has sued
United Airlines, accusing the company of subjecting a flight attendant to
sexual harassment over a period of several years by not taking action in
response to her formal complaints.
The airline says it will fight the case.
The suit, filed by the federal government agency on Aug. 9
in U.S. District Court in San Antonio, asks the court to require United to pay
damages to the flight attendant, who is referenced only as Jane Doe in the
filing.
The case relates to former United pilot Mark Uhlenbrock, who
dated the flight attendant from 2002 to 2006, according to the EEOC. Sometime
around 2006, the flight attendant learned that Uhlenbrock had begun posting
nude photos of her online.
Uhlenbrock continued to post the photos over the next
decade, the suit says, including a partially nude photo of his ex-lover in her
United uniform. The postings sometimes referenced the flight attendant's name
and home airport, and one of them played off United's famous slogan, saying the
flight attendant was a "new reason to fly the friendly skies," the
EEOC complaint says. In some cases, Uhlenbrock made the postings while working
for the airline.
"Uhlenbrock's posts were reasonably expected, if not
calculated, to affect her terms and conditions at work," the suit says.
According to the lawsuit, the flight attendant first
formally complained to United management about the postings in 2011, but said United
did not take adequate action. As a result, the flight attendant bid on flight
schedules that gave her the best chance of avoiding Uhlenbrock, the lawsuit
claims.
In 2013, the flight attendant again filed a formal
complaint. This time United interviewed the pilot but took no other action.
Uhlenbrock stayed on the United payroll until July 2016 and retired with full
benefits, according to the lawsuit.
In the meantime, in 2015 the FBI charged Uhlenbrock with
stalking for his continued postings of nude photos of the flight attendant. In
June 2016, Uhlenbrock pleaded guilty to stalking and was sentenced to 41 months
in prison, the lawsuit says.
In an emailed statement, United said it disagrees with the
EEOC's description of the situation.
"United does not tolerate sexual harassment in the
workplace and will vigorously defend against this case," the carrier said.