The company that owns the Laughlin River Lodge has agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit brought last year by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 

The EEOC announced the agreement on Tuesday, saying the settlement also requires the company to post notices about the case and put new safeguards in place to prevent future harassment.

“Hostile Work Environment”

Nevada Restaurant Services Inc., based in Las Vegas, operates the Laughlin River Lodge along with the Dotty’s, Bourbon Street, and Red Dragon chains. According to the EEOC’s complaint, employees at several of the company’s properties faced serious and persistent sexual harassment going back to at least 2018. 

The allegations involve both male and female workers and include inappropriate comments, unwanted physical contact, and misconduct by co-workers as well as supervisors.

According to the lawsuit, the company was aware of repeated complaints but failed to act effectively, leaving some employees feeling like they needed to quit to get away from the situation. 

In court filings, the EEOC described a pattern of “ongoing, unwelcome, severe, and pervasive sexual harassment, and creating and maintaining an offensive, abusive, intimidating and hostile work environment because of sex.”

The details about behavior at the Laughlin property were especially disturbing. Court documents said male workers “subjected female employees to unwanted physical sexual advances,” including the attempted rape of a 19-year-old employee. 

Other accusations involved groping, stalking employees after work, and trapping them in places like walk-in refrigerators or locked hotel rooms to make unwanted advances.

Inked Consent Decree

The settlement was formalized in a consent decree signed on October 14, which outlines a process for current and former employees to request compensation from the $1.2 million fund. 

Anyone who worked for the company and experienced sexual harassment between 2019 and now may qualify. 

In a statement, Anna Park, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Los Angeles district, said, “We commend Nevada Restaurant Services for their cooperation in the early resolution of this lawsuit and agreeing to implement proactive measures to proactively address sexual harassment and to encourage employees to report harassment.” 

Park added that employers must make sure “their workers are protected from sexual harassment by having effective policies and procedures” while holding managers and supervisors accountable for the safety of workers.