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sexual harassment awards

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A

arabhorse

Guest
state:montana
i'll try to summarize as briefly as possible. i was sexually harassed 2.5 years ago for a period of one year. employer had no company policy in place, no grievance procedure, etc. i went to employer and notified him of harassment. he did nothing - no investigation - refused to even look at documentation i had from the harasser which included love letters, cards, hardcore pornographic emails, etc. this went on for a year, during which time i notified the employer on at least six different times formally, and almost daily informally. finally, i took steps to get this stopped by hiring an attorney. approximately the same time, harasser quit his job. attorneys filed with human rights bureau on my behalf and also put together a demand letter for $100K. employer ignored it, suit was filed and i remained at work because it was a specialized industry in a rural area in which i have experience and qualifications and i would have to travel an hour and a half each way to find a similar job. plus the pay was much higher than anything else i could find in the area. within a month, employer brought in mgmt consulting firm to "restructure" organization of under 20 employees, and within two months i was terminated.

that was a year and a half ago. i had/have been diagnosed with severe ptsd, i have attempted suicide on 5-6 different occasions, i ended up having to go into a chemical dependency treatment center, and i have scars on my wrists and arms from razor blade cuts. that career was my life, and it's been taken away from me thru no fault of my own. i have been and am still on anti-depressants - i have no idea for how much longer, if I ever

we are less than two weeks away from the state trial. we have been given the right-to-sue from the EEOC. the employer and his employees have been deposed - employer admits all of this occurred, and that he did nothing about it. harasser admitted to all that he did including fondling, and other physical contact, and letters, emails, etc. he also states employer didn't do anything about it. i have three psychologists who have seen me who stated that i had and still have ptsd, and am lucky to be alive today. the defense hired a psychologist for an ime which also states that i have severe ptsd and am a very, very angry lady still. my husband and kids have suffered - one psychologist even said if it weren't for my husband, i would be dead today.

now everyone's talking settlement. the defense has not put up one, and again their depositions agree with i've been saying all along. my attorneys say they have no idea how serious this is, but i should take a look at settling. i would like to have this behind me, but at the same time, because of the rural area, and because this employer has gotten away with this and so much more similar over 15 years, and now i'm being treated differently by the community, i wonder whether i ought to go for it. it's a slam dunk case. money is not the key issue here - awards are given by courts because at this point, that's all they really can give. with that in mind, i want to make sure i get compensated, but i don't want to be greedy. the state doesn't allow punitive damages and is known for notoriously low awards. not really a big deal, since federal level is totally different. do i settle, and obviously have to keep quiet about this the rest of my life, or is worth the potential couple more years to go thru appeals, etc. one psychologist is nationally known on interpersonal communication issues and has been called as an expert witness in trials like this across the country - she says this is the worst case of sexual harassment she has ever seen. my lawyers aren't helping much with any settlement amounts - they originally said about $700K for state and federal of which they will get their share. today they said if i'm offered $250K i should take it. they're a good firm - they've been very thorough and have the highest of reputations. but now, suddenly, i'm thinking my life was worth a bit more than $250K before expenses, and I just don't know. I want this to end, but I don't want to second guess a settlement decision for years to come.

i would like to talk to a victim who recently took it all the way to the federal level - find out whether it was worth it. i'd like to know what i could reasonably expect in damages. any advice, thoughts or whatever from anyone would be greatly appreciated.
 



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