Former workers sue city car dealership

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This article was published 31/08/2017 (2971 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two women are suing a Winnipeg car dealership for wrongful dismissal, claiming they were sexually harassed by some of their male colleagues.

In separate statements of claim filed in court this summer, the women each claim they were subjected to repeated public sexual commentary and unwanted touching from male employees at Vickar Mitsubishi and that the company ignored their complaints. The allegations in the statement of claim haven’t been proven.

In an emailed statement, a lawyer for Vickar Mitsubishi said the company acted quickly to address “this very disturbing situation.”

Lawyer Wayne Onchulenko didn’t directly address the allegations, writing that the court process “limits discussion on the matter.” The company has not filed statements of defence, although a former employee named in one of the claims has denied any wrongdoing. Onchulenko said Vickar Mitsubishi will respond to the claims “at the appropriate time.”

“The fact is that inappropriate behaviour in any workplace must not be tolerated,” Onchulenko wrote in his email to the Free Press. “When this very disturbing situation was brought forward, we acted quickly to address it. Internal and external investigations into the matter resulted in the departure of a manager and a change in workplace practices.

“Further, a series of diversity training sessions are planned for employees to reinforce the need for courteous and considerate behaviour in the workplace. Everyone is entitled to a safe, respectful workplace environment.”

The women’s lawyer, Victor Bargen, said his clients have suffered lasting stress and trauma as a result of being mistreated at work and want recognition of wrongdoing as well as compensation from the dealership, which he said “dropped the ball.”

“This isn’t 1962, where we can have a workplace that has that kind of conduct and people expect to get away with it,” Bargen said. “That’s simply not the world that we live in and it shouldn’t have happened and my clients want that to be addressed.”

One of the women began working as a full-time receptionist for Vickar Mitsubishi in July 2015, and was fired in February 2016 after she made two formal complaints about the behaviour of a now former employee. She accuses the dealership of ignoring “consistent and ongoing” sexual advances at the hands of her superiors.

In her statement of claim, she accuses the employee of assault and battery, sexual battery, false imprisonment and the intentional infliction of mental suffering for repeatedly groping her at work, sometimes in the presence of other employees, and making lewd comments. At one point, he restrained her against a cabinet, put his hand up her dress to “ascertain the status of the plaintiff’s undergarments,” the statement says.

The lawsuit, which also names two other Vickar Mitsubishi employees, the company itself, Lakeside Automotive Group and related numbered companies, claims she was wrongfully dismissed and that those in charge turned a blind eye to “the sexually toxic workplace,” didn’t implement or follow any sexual-harassment policies and failed to properly address her complaints, allowing the alleged misconduct to continue.

The second woman worked as a finance manager for Vickar Mitsubishi from September 2015 until she was fired on April 5, 2016. She alleges male employees made repeated remarks about her breasts, made “public sexual gestures” in the showroom including rubbing her shoulders and blowing in her ear. An employee also grabbed her head and pulled it toward his groin, and on another occasion repeatedly wrapped a scarf around her neck, saying “I know you like it like this,” according to the statement of claim. She accuses the dealership, its affiliated companies and three employees of assault and battery, sexual battery and the intentional infliction of mental suffering.

“The defendants falsely stated to the plaintiff that the reason for her termination was due to poor performance, attendance and bad behaviour. The plaintiff was dismissed without cause, reasonable notice or sufficient pay in lieu thereof,” her statement of claim says.

Bargen said compensation is “one of many factors” why the women are pursuing civil litigation. He said to his knowledge, there hasn’t been a criminal investigation of the allegations.

“What they decided to do was to have their redress where they could be compensated, and the compensation that’s available at Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench civil division is much different than it is in criminal court.”

katie.may@freepress.mb.ca