McDonald Oil Company to Pay $400,000 to Settle EEOC Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – McDonald Oil Company has agreed to pay $400,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

McDonald Oil is a Georgia-based corporation that operates gas stations and convenience stores in Alabama and Georgia. According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, McDonald Oil ignored frequent complaints from multiple female employees and customers about ongoing sexual harassment by a male employee working for its Summit Food stores in Orange Beach and Spanish Fort, Alabama. The agency charged that multiple managers were aware of these complaints but failed to correct the hostile work environment, choosing instead to transfer the harasser to another store where he continued sexually harassing female employees.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits an employer from permitting a hostile work environment based on sex. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. McDonald Oil Company, Case No. 1:21-cv-00407) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama after its Mobile Local Office completed an investigation and attempted to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its voluntary conciliation process.

The EEOC’s lawsuit alleged that the harasser subjected female employees and customers to unwanted sexual touching, sexual comments about their bodies and questions about their sex lives. The agency further alleged that the harasser solicited co-workers for sex, repeatedly disrobed at work and circulated nude and semi-nude photos of himself that ultimately resulted in his criminal prosecution.

“An employer violates Title VII when it fails to correct sexual harassment by an employee,” said EEOC Birmingham District Director Bradley Anderson. “Transferring a harasser to work around other women without any corrective discipline does not correct a hostile work environment, it only exacerbates the problem by creating more victims. The EEOC is committed to ensuring that employers reasonably investigate and take meaningful corrective action when they learn of complaints of sexual harassment.”

Marsha Rucker, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Birmingham District added, “Ignoring numerous complaints about this harasser provided him more opportunity to continue his harassment and to ultimately escalate his conduct into actions that led to his arrest and criminal conviction. The EEOC will aggressively pursue remedies for victims of sexual harassment in the workplace.”

Under a three-year consent decree settling the suit, McDonald Oil will pay a total of $400,000 to five female employees who allege they suffered severe mental anguish and emotional distress stemming from sexual harassment in the workplace; revise its policies and procedures to prevent future incidents of sexual harassment; train its management on documenting and investigating sexual harassment complaints; and train employees on their right to work in an environment free from sexual harassment.

For more information on sexual harassment, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/sexual-harassment

The EEOC’s Birmingham District consists of Alabama, Mississippi (except 17 northern counties) and the Florida Panhandle.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.