Dallas jury awards $2.2M for sexually hostile work environment

In December 2024, an obviously upset Dallas jury dished out the largest jury verdict ever obtained by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in the Northern District of Texas. Because we learn more from disasters than from best practices, let’s discuss what went wrong.

Taking the ‘wrong path’

Sarah Budd worked for SkyWest Airlines as a parts clerk at Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport. She transferred to DFW from a different duty station. On September 4, 2019, only nine workdays after the transfer, she complained to her supervisor, Dustin Widmer, that she felt singled out as a young woman in a workplace otherwise full of men and that she did not feel “safe.”

Widmer didn’t ask for any additional details, only telling her to let him know “if things get worse.” He and Budd allegedly agreed that escalating her complaint could result in placing an even bigger target on her back. Knowledge requires action—in this case, asking for details, getting HR involved, or some other proactive action, even if it only involved informally checking with Budd on a regular basis. But he did zero.

Harassment continues

Between October 24 and December 3, Budd took an unpaid leave of absence. She claimed it was because of the sexually hostile environment at SkyWest. When she returned to work, she was allegedly exposed to ongoing comments about rape and sexual jokes made over a candy jar dressed as a woman. As a result, she claims to have “hysterically cried” in the bathroom.