Woman endured intolerable car ride during which male boss repeatedly asked for sex

Overview: After enduring a lengthy car ride during which she kept rejecting her boss’s requests for sex, a female staffer complained about his behavior, but her allegations were ignored.

The scenario: Samantha Labrado felt uncomfortable during her employment at Persian Room Fine Dining, Phoenix, AZ, because the owner, Nasser Nikkhahmanesh, frequently inquired about her personal life. For instance, he asked her whether she was married. And Nikkhahmanesh often told her that she looked very pretty.

Things came to a head when Labrado went on a work-related day trip that involved traveling alone in a car with Nikkhahmanesh. During the ride, he falsely claimed on the phone with his sister that he’d pulled to the side of the road and had quick sex with Labrado. Later, the owner randomly pointed out a sex store they were driving by.

During the ride, the owner also mentioned his massage techniques to Labrado.

When they arrived at the destination, Nikkhahmanesh put his arm around Labrado’s shoulder and told her that there was a nice hotel nearby with a jacuzzi. He asked Labrado whether she’d like to join him in the hotel room for the night. She refused.

On the ride back, Labrado told Nikkhahmanesh she was going to fall asleep in the car. In response, he said, “Good, that means I can do whatever I want to you and you’ll never know.”
When they returned from the trip, Labrado complained about Nikkhahmanesh’s behavior, but nothing was done. Instead, the woman was fired for reasons that appear to have been fabricated.

Legal challenge: Labrado went to the EEOC, which sued Persian Room Fine Dining for sexual harassment.

The ruling: The company lost. It paid $65,000 to settle the lawsuit.

Based on EEOC v Rainbow Tree, LLC, d/b/a Persian Room Fine Dining.

(From the June 12, 2020, issue of HR Manager’s Legal Alert for Supervisors. To download the entire issue for free, please click here.)